Playing by the Rules
by VCAyuki
Summary: Rules aren't that easy to follow. They never were and never will be. However, the expectations from others and the stereotypes both rate higher than rules on the difficulty scale. Why did the judgemental mind ever have to exist? Living through life had been complicated, but eventually she's learned to strive, cope, and finally: give in. (An OC Story with its own plots and flair)
1. Part 1: Striving-Chapter 1

_CAUTION! What you're about to read is an OC Naruto fanfiction. If you do not respect these types of stories then I suggest you stop reading and to please take your opinions elsewhere._

_This story is dedicated to those who like this kind of fanfiction._

_I do not own any of the Naruto characters. I only own the OC and the story itself._

**The main character also does not represent me in any way. She is another being. This is _her_ story she is telling. **

**I'm merely just passing it on.**

**~o0o~**

**_Thank you to my brilliant Beta: Bree Avalon, For her adept Revising and Thoughts._**

**_Thank you to the fantastic Ria D'Arcy; A new Beta whose flow of pieces astound me, and has made this chapter much readable._**

**_~o0o~_**

**Asterisk symbols (***) indicate short/long time skips or scene changes.**

* * *

_My Ninja RuleBook! _

_Rule#1- Do not dwell on the past. It would only get in the way._

* * *

**PART 1: Striving**

Chapter 1:

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_"You can't just write blandly about your view on things that focuses on the whole purpose of your story, and expect that to be it. There's more to writing than everyone thinks there is. You have to be _passionate _about what it is you're writing, and soon all of your readers will be able to experience the very same sensations you feel."_

_I shake my head, picturing the crazy, yet wise sannin utter those exact same quotes. He was actually being serious for once when he was elaborating on the concept, but in the end he referred to one of his perverted books as an example of 'true passion'. _

_Well, of course I believe him. What he was saying before made sense. But where do I start? Where can I begin to coax back the old memories correctly? _

_I chance a glance at the roaring, splashing waters about ten feet below me, its source of pressure coming from the river that lies adjacent to my feet. Frequently, I wish to stay here, and live out my days until time itself runs out leaving me to rot. I believe it's better to dwell here in the middle of this tranquil forest than to confront more displeasure back at the village. I'm not needed there._

_I rub the palms of my hands lightly against the lush, green surface of earth, fisting its soft strands of life. I yank it out with a slight pull, and I cast the still green blades of grass out yonder for them to slowly drift down the cliff. Leaning over, I watch until they disappear, becoming too minute for the human eye to see. Did the strands land safely? I don't have a clue. But I'm sure they'll decompose into the ground somehow, and grow back to even fresher blades of life, right? Right?_

_Surely they will. Every being deserves a second chance._

_Blowing out a breathy sigh, I let myself fall onto my back, the locks of my hair tickling my shoulder blades. How easy is it to end an organism's life? Apparently too easy. Why is that? _

_I ponder my past critically, searching the depths inside my brain; willingly delving into the sacred text that was all ancient dialogue. The idea of taking lives just for the fun of it, reminds me of a specific date. _

_Without even knowing it, I go back in time. I fly back nearly a decade worth of troubles, achievements, and sensations. I immerse myself in the old, and push away the new. My hands become softer, and smaller, and my feet do the same. My hair is slashed in half, and I shrink in size. This is where I'm going to start coaxing back the memories._

_Then perhaps when I'm done… maybe I'll finally write the preamble._

_I shift to my side in a way that would allow me to watch both the landscape around me and the village, which looked quite quaint and peaceful from a few miles away. I got comfortable, because I knew it'd be a while before I got moving again, leaving forever._

_Let's see, it had been the eleventh month of the year._ _The seventh year of my life_, and I was crushed…

(***)

The trees and their thousands of leaves flashed by my face like an endless green blur as I leapt off each branch. I knew I was at least three stories high up so I didn't dare to look down, not right now. I was in a hurry. Usually I hated tree-hopping because of the height and the gravity tugging on my stomach every time I landed, but given the situation I was in I completely ignored it.

Being on the ground made me feel helpless, like a little rat scurrying to get away and hide from its predator. So springing from tree to tree, it gave me the airborne feeling like that of a hawk's, and I _almost _felt fearless and determined.

"Curse them. Curse them all!" I cried out angrily, my shrilly voice resonating throughout the vast forest. I stopped at a random branch, leaning one clenched hand against the bark. Using the other free hand, I wiped furiously at my puffy eyes. I tried to breathe clearly but it kept coming out in short, staggered, sharp intakes of air.

_I'm not a disgrace! I'm not!_

I growled between sobs, pushing my parent's insults to the back of my head. I had to keep going, even if I had no clear destination. I just wanted to get as far away from **_them_** as possible.

I continued my tree-hopping, my throat rumbling angrily until it was reduced to moans of grief. My parents' words came floating back, like it did every time. Our fights were always the same, always a one-sided argument. "_Why can't you be like everyone else?_" They told me not too long ago. These words were their latest batch, and they never seemed to stop coming. "_What's wrong with you?"_

I was so absorbed within myself, I didn't notice the piece of paper in my hand slowly slipping out of my grasp until it was too late. I halted immediately, almost losing my balance on the massive branch.

"No," I growled in exasperation.

My head frantically twisted in many angles until I finally found the piece of paper slowly descending down into the depths of the forest. Without hesitation, I dove towards it.

I quickly snatched it back into the confines of my hand. It was a happy moment, but then the feeling was squashed when I unpleasantly crashed into a small bush and traveled through what it had to offer. I landed on the dirt floor in a small heap.

I let out a muffled groan, and a sharp pain shot up my spine as I tried to get up and out of the bush. I was nearly out until I was jerked back by a few strands of my hair tangled in the branches.

Fumbling with my fingers, I tried to free my trapped hair. Earlier, I swore that I wouldn't cry for my parents. I would hold onto my pride. But now, with this irritating situation of the bush, I just let it all out. Wailing out in rage like the little cry-baby I was, I blindly ripped my hair off the offending branches and stumbled my way towards a random tree to sit against. From here, I could see a few strands of my hair hanging limply off the bush like a ruined, black spider-web.

_All this trouble for a piece of paper, _I thought grumpily. I smoothed said paper out and it revealed a disfigured circle with a tiny pole jutting out from the bottom of it. The circle was colored half red on top, and the rest of it was white. There was no more to it but that symbol. It was my clan's symbol. The clan I was born into.

I stared at it, taking in all of its shoddy glory. From time to time, during those precious moments that my dad and I had together, he would tell me how courageous and powerful our clan was despite being a part of a larger village system.

"_We are the Uchiha!" _He'd say out loud, full of unspoken pride. "_We are the clan who keeps the fires burning bright and fiercely!" _

Then afterwards he'd revert back to his old self and completely ignore me.

So I took those moments of truth as my dad's weak-point. Since I knew he probably loved me the least in our three-person household, I turned his love of the clan to my advantage. Sure, I was a failure to his and my mom's eyes, but that didn't stop me from appreciating my bloodline. I was as prideful as my dad when it came to it; and it's one of the few traits we have in common. Therefore, in order to prove to him that I was a good child, I drew our clan's symbol in my own spare time during class: a circular fan—or rather—a disproportional sized fan.

It was the afternoon when I was released from school along with the other kids, and I remember the excitement I'd felt in my bones as I zipped through the village, desperate to get home. My mouth still ached from all that grinning I was doing. I wanted to show my dad the drawing I'd made. I hoped that would help improve my relationship with him.

_But that's not what happened, _I thought angrily, seething through my clenched teeth. When I had rushed into his room and joyfully shoved the picture into his face, he snatched it away from my hands and threw it to the side like it was just some bothersome advertisement he'd seen in his newspapers. I'd offered my love for the hundredth time but he once again ignored it. It was maddening. It was almost like a slap to my face personally.

Then our usual one-sided argument had ensued about how embarrassing I was, and it ultimately led to me running away. The first few times I had fled, my mom came and got me; but now that it became a habit of mine she stopped completely. No one bothered to try and fetch me anymore.

My fingers trembled slightly as I glided them across the beat-up piece of paper. _I am proud of you, _I wanted to tell it, but what's the use when it didn't have ears? I pulled the piece of paper into a soft embrace against my chest. _I love you_.

I wished that it would return the hug and share my same feelings, but that would never happen unless I changed the way I acted. How was I supposed to do that though? Was that even possible? It wasn't my fault I didn't act the way an ideal Uchiha would act. I actually _liked _talking to my friends. I _liked_ helping them out. I couldn't be the unfeeling Uchiha my parents wanted me to be. They even said I was the very reason I was holding myself back from training to be a ninja!

'_An Uchiha ninja has to be relentless and focused! We can't have a hyper Uchiha.'_

I sniffed and cried a second time. I heard the tree tops above me rustle with commotion, its inhabitants taking flight into the pink sky. My cries sounded louder than past ones, but maybe that was just me. Was the action more painful than previous experiences? I couldn't tell, and I didn't care. They all felt the same, and maybe I'll never stop. Let the wild creatures out in these woods eat me, and tear me from limb to limb...

My head shot up as my mind rendered to me a very disturbing image of animals on a rampage after me. Usually I'd never thought about the threats of a forest when I was away from home, but perhaps it was because of the recent lesson I've learned from my dad about the dangers of the woods. Mom probably forced him to teach it to me to stop me from going out into the forest so much, but that never stopped me.

I blinked the tears out of my eyes and moaned out the last of my grief as I crawled my way back to the house; opposite to the direction I had first been heading in. Mad at them or not, they were still my parents and I was still a little girl. Naturally I needed their protection, and besides, it felt like the right time to be heading back to the house anyways. I always came back, with no pride whatsoever.

With a goal in mind, and that terrifying image still replaying itself, I stumbled to my feet despite my back's protests. The eerie silence of the forest got me thinking, despite the gnawing urge to run and hide from the spookiness of it all.

_Maybe I can apologize to my parents_, I thought wildly. _I can change myself for them and make them proud. Their yelling is so loud, and it makes me scared. I just want to be like the other kids and their parents who get ice cream on the way home from school. I love mommy and daddy._

I smiled faintly. What in the world was I thinking? Then, as if that wasn't abnormal enough for today, my mind started conjuring up fake images of my parents and I frolicking through a field of flowers in pure bliss.

I sighed, shaking my head. _If only that really happened. Mommy likes flowers, and I bet daddy would really want to see that too… if he wasn't so angry all the time. _

I tilted my head up to look up at the sky, thinking about the possibilities, but then my jaw dropped open in shock. Night was beginning to reveal itself with its bleak colors of purple, blue and black.

_Animals, foaming at the mouth and chasing after me..._

I stood there, not knowing what to do. I was having a lapse. _Mommy! Daddy!_ I wanted to shout out so they could come running. But I knew that wouldn't happen even if I was on the edge of death. They were mad at me! Panic coursed through my system and I didn't even try to stop myself from hyperventilating.

After a few moments of just standing there, I finally decided that I had to find a hiding place. Trees were everywhere in my line of vision. There weren't any caves or anything else but the gigantic towering trees, so I frantically limped on my feet to each one of them, inspecting their trunks for any wide crevices or some kind of hole, anything big enough for me to fit in.

At last! I had found a hole that would suffice and immediately dived into it, squeezing myself in different positions to fit into the grubby, smelly hole of the tree trunk. I clenched my roughly drawn symbol of my clan tightly to my chest, trying to absorb some type of comfort.

I thought sleep would never come, but after a good long time of suspenseful silence I managed to drift off to sleep. Dreaming of running in a field of flowers with a weird purple sky overhead…

The only thing wrong was that my parents were nowhere in sight.

(***)

A sudden rowdy sort of commotion slowly met my ears, and I thought of my mom and school. I had school almost every day, and I had to wake up crazy early in the mornings. It was something I grew to despise. I had an alarm clock, but always managed to sleep through its ringing. So my mom acted as my own personal alarm system with her squawky parroting.

"Mommy, not yet," I slurred, waving my hand in the air to hit something _very _moist and hard. I did _not _expect that.

Utterly disturbed, I jolted upward and bumped the top of my head with another similar surface.

"Ow!" I rubbed my head and blinked rapidly to try and assess my surroundings. I wasn't in my bed, or even in my room. My mom wasn't in sight either.

I stared outside of the supposed hole I was in. The first rays of sunlight cascaded down through the treetops, indicating morning. I sighed, feeling somewhat rejuvenated for an odd reason. It was as if I ran miles yesterday...

I almost choked on my breath as the memories came rushing back into my head from last night. _I went home yesterday to get a slap in the face from my daddy… I ran away, and now here I am in a stinky hole._

I clenched my hands. Why did I have to be so weird and run off? I was lost, dirty, terribly uncomfortable, and hurt both mentally and physically because I knew I still had to confront my parents. I might as well practice being stoic and boring now that I had the chance.

"Because I'm an '_Uchiha'_" I mocked, air-quoting the word _Uchiha_ with my fingers. Sure, the gesture was mean and only the mean girls at my school used it, but couldn't have cared less. I felt like being mean. My parents were being unfair.

_Wait, where's my drawing?_ I gasped and looked at my hands. It wasn't there. I pulled my hair in frustration, and touched all around inside the tiny hole. It didn't take very long until I found it behind me, underneath my rear end. Now how did that get there?

"Silly drawing," I sighed in relief. Just because I didn't _like_ acting like an Uchiha, didn't mean I _hated _being one. There was a difference in that, right?

As I crumbled my drawing up into a portable little ball, the loud ruckus that awoke me reached my ears once again. It was probably from the village, because a lot did take place in the mornings.

I crawled out of my place cautiously and straightened myself out the best I could. I bent over and shook my hair out, releasing any materials like leaves and dirt. Lastly, I stood proudly and made sure my single cowlick on top of my head was present. _Check. _I liked my cowlick.

Once I felt presentable, I set off towards the noisy village with a straight face. A few looks here and there around the forest later, I reached the gigantic welcoming gates of Konoha; however no one was at the reception desk.

Wasn't there usually someone here? I shrugged it off. It made things all the easier. I wouldn't have to explain myself to anybody.

Crossing the vast dirt field in front of the gates, I went over to the right, heading towards a specific tree closest to the village walls. This was no ordinary tree, because its branches extended way up and dipped into the village. I pronounced owning this tree months ago when I had discovered it in between my adventures of fleeing my parents. The amazing plant acted as my own personal bridge across the lofty village borders.

I climbed up the tree, the action a lot harder than I thought, and dropped abruptly onto the ground within the borders of my clan. I quickly got up and made a move to run towards my house, but then I noticed that something was terribly off. No one was outside. Absolutely _no one_.

I looked around at the vacant roads with confusion. Normally, I'd see my neighbors with their stoic and prideful strolls, but they weren't anywhere to be seen. It was like one of those ghost-towns the teacher had read to my class once; a town that was desolate and vacant.

I swallowed back the fear in my throat but I couldn't stop it from spreading to my face. A frown pulled itself onto the corners of my mouth as I slowly walked to my house. On the way there I noticed all the doors to each neighbor's home were closed too.

My entire body shook. There was this strange smell in the air that I couldn't quite describe. It smelled bad, even worse than the old socks I had once found lying in my drawer. _What was worse than old socks?_ I pinched my nose and whimpered at the rancid smell. _What the heck is it?_ _The Uchiha grounds have never smelled like this before._

Wanting to get away from the freaky scent, I started running towards my house instead of just walking. My house held the signature smell of hyacinths and I couldn't wait to breathe that in instead. The hyacinth was my mom's favorite flower, and dad would bring her one every day whenever he got home from work.

I stopped once my feet landed on my front porch, making an audible _bump_ from my tiring sprint.

"Mommy, daddy I'm home!" I shouted with glee, showering them with love and relief. Then I remembered our fight and quickly changed my demeanor to the Uchiha they wanted me to be. "I-I mean, I'm home," I stated with a bit more aloofness, and what I imagined to be in a deeper tone.

I stepped forward and turned the doorknob quietly. I entered the familiar surroundings that I knew to be home, and closed the door. It was just how I had left it. A flight of stairs leading to the second and final floor of the house lied to the right side, while the large corridor that extended all the way down into the living room and the kitchen lied to the left.

Right about now was when mom was supposed to come strutting out with either an apron or a headband on—or just possibly both if she was stressed out enough—and she would say, "Why're you so dirty, Souka?" or "Young lady, stop shouting that nonsense." After that, she'd embrace me in a tight hug, outright relieved that I was still in one piece.

I waited patiently for the routine to happen. But it didn't.

Then I noticed another thing off. The putrid smell from outside seemed to be in the house too. I wrinkled my face in discomfort, and quietly wondered if my mom threw away some of the hyacinths. _Why would she do that? Daddy had better bring home some fresh ones quick._

It was unnervingly silent as I crept down the hallway. I wasn't exactly sure why I was creeping when I could just walk, but it seemed strange with the current atmosphere. The floorboards creaked beneath my dirt-encrusted sandals. _Mommy would kill me if she saw me like this._

I slowly passed by the entrances to the bathroom and to my parent's room, both doors to the rooms opened wide. I peered in but I couldn't see any signs of my mom or dad. Nothing made a peep. I wondered if they went somewhere; maybe to go look for me? I hovered near the opposite side of the hallway walls that were bare save for a few family portraits. Something was terribly off. If my parents did try to look for me, then I would have been home by dusk yesterday.

I stopped at the end of the hallway, at its corner. I hoped that once I turned, I would enter the living room and see my mom just dozing off on the couch peacefully while my dad was in the kitchen doing who-knows-what. I crossed my fingers, really hoping that I was right despite the strange situation.

_Everything should be alright_, I told myself. I took a shaky breath and took one step after another, closing my eyes in anticipation. I was ready to shake my mom awake and tell her—stoically – about my brave adventure in the woods, my drawing I tried to show her before the fight had ensued, exclaim to her—calmly—how odd the neighbors were being, and just what that smell was outside. And maybe, just maybe, I would say I'm sorry and go to school straight away if there was even school going on today. I couldn't remember.

I walked until I was sure I was in the middle of the living room, and I opened my eyes, ready to explode with jubilance.

But instead I screamed.

I wasn't screaming out of frustration that I wasn't being 'stoic' enough, that I surprisingly caught myself not being in character. I wasn't screaming out of annoyance because my mom and dad weren't here, and out at work. However with the sight before me, I actually wished they were somewhere else.

_M-mommy and daddy are bleeding!_

They were lying motionless on the ground before me. Why did I have to walk this far into the living room? I drew rapid breaths. I wanted to look away and bolt out the door and never come back, but my eyes wouldn't give. I couldn't stop _staring _at their wide open eyes, the blood pooling around them. I knew what dead animals looked like, and it was exactly how my parents portrayed them. Shrieking, wailing, flailing, I frantically pounded my drawing into the floor several times at the gruesome sight before me. _Why are they dead?! Why?!_

The smell reached my nose, and with the combined, gruesome image, I retched up liquid in front of me. There was nothing in my stomach to throw up, so I imagined the liquid to be tears and all of the other emotions.

"M-_mommy_!" I wailed profusely, "_I wanted to buy ice cream with you and daddy! Don't leave me!"_

The scene was too much. My head spun once and I fell to the side in a heap. Depression filled me. My eyes were glazed thickly with forlorn tears, and I settled with staring at my beloved parents until I, too, would die. My childhood was over.

Before I slipped into oblivion, I saw a single stained hyacinth clenched in my father's lifeless hand. It would have been beautiful if not for the blood.

(***)

At school, there were these three kids in my class that I'd see every school day. They'd mope around at the playground, stare mindlessly at the board, they didn't eat their lunches and other pitiful things like that. I had never seen them do anything else, the least half-heartedly. I thought, "How did people even _act_ like that?" Isn't it kind of lonely and boring to be like that? A little nerve-wrecking? Why not get up and be happy?

I asked my teacher about them one day and she told me that their parents weren't 'here' right now and that they were off on long missions. I didn't exactly understand her explanation because my dad went on missions all the time and you didn't see me acting like a slug.

But now I knew exactly what my teacher had meant, because hidden behind those reassuring, fake words and that reassuring, fake smile of hers, was the ugly truth. _Not 'here', but as in 'gone' and 'dead'._

Days after my parents' death, I found myself lying on a white, sterile bed, with my hands by my sides. I don't know how long I've been here, but I've only seen the sunset twice outside the large square of window to my right. It might have been hours or even days since I've last seen my parents on their deathbeds.

I was staring up at the ceiling and all I saw was white. It made me wonder how it was so clean. Even the walls in my room back at the Uchiha quarters weren't that pure. The ceiling here was just _that_ white. White for calmness, security, void, and limbo. The perfect color for a hospital.

And that's exactly how I felt. Not calm or secure, but I felt void and stuck in limbo. I didn't know what to feel. My emotions were having a war inside of me, and I was in a middle of it. Was I supposed to be utterly depressed or boiling to the brim with anger? I felt nothing. I still couldn't accept the fact that I was motherless and fatherless. I was one of those languid kids now that would sulk all day with no other thoughts except the fact that they were alone. All alone with maybe nothing left.

I blinked, the action hurting my salt-crusted eyelids. I slowly lifted a single clenched hand to wipe away the little grains of sour tears that resided beneath my eyes. However, it wasn't long before a fresh new batch of tears sprung up to fill the small crooks around the insides of my eye sockets. Was I crying for no  
reason? No, that wasn't possible. Everyone had a reason to cry. But could you cry and feel no emotion at the same time?

Still lying down, I took my crumpled up drawing out of my clenched fist and unfolded it. I held the picture up in front of my face and examined it. _My clan's symbol._

By now, I've figured out that probably everyone in my clan had died judging by that smell of death when I was in the Uchiha compounds. I was probably the only Uchiha in existence. Didn't I feel special? No. Now I'm all alone in this world with the most relative thing I have: my drawing-

"What's that?" A voice called out so raspy and soft; I barely heard it even in the silence of the room. I nearly jumped out of my bed. Was there someone else in here? I turned my head towards the voice and noticed a bed right beside mine, but a few feet away.

It was a boy, young enough looking to pass for as one of my classmates. He was lying in a similar fashion as I was and looked equally as distressed. Our eyes met and all I could see was a pitch black iris. How come I've never noticed this boy here?

"What's what?" I replied. My voice was scratchy as well.

"That." He pointed with a stubby finger, and I slowly followed his line of vision to end up at the piece of paper clenched by my fingers. He was pointing at my drawing.

I stared at his finger, then at my picture. I had no idea how to respond. I knew what to say, but I also knew I didn't want to say it. The name of my clan felt so taboo. I gulped and breathed out shakily, finally resting with a vague response.

"Art I made in class."

He didn't reply as he mutely stared back up at the ceiling, seemingly content with my short answer. I had the sudden urge to prod him with questions like 'Why'd you want to know?' and 'Who the heck are you?', but I just resumed to having a staring contest with the ceiling above me. I sighed softly, crumbled the paper again, and placed it back into the sweaty palm of my hand.

Somehow, talking made me feel better. I didn't feel at all like the few, depressed anti-social kids in my class where talking made them upset. Surprisingly, it did wonders to my mood having to finally use my voice after so long. It may have been only a few words exchanged, but it was the underlying meaning to it that had me up on a cloud, overlooking the whole village, and not at all lying in the hospital bed pretending to feel secure.

Someone had finally taken interest in my drawing. That's all that mattered to me at the moment.

..

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**A/N:**** This is my first attempt at a full-blown Naruto OC story. Well, the first chapter of it. I would call this a Self-Insert, because it follows canon plot, but that's the only similarity. Souka does not represent me in any way. She is an Original Character with her own thoughts and actions, and doesn't know anything about the 'future' like in other Self-Inserts ^^. I am aware of the changes that should happen if another character is added to the plot line. I am very confident in it and I hope to continue it further almost every week or 2, and each chapter will be expected to be just as long as this one. Constructive criticism and just random reviews are welcome! (But flames aren't) **

**Thank you for your time. Happy Roaming **


	2. -Chapter 2

_CAUTION! What you're about to read is an OC Naruto fanfiction. If you do not respect these types of stories then I suggest you stop reading and take your opinions elsewhere._

_This story is dedicated to those who like this kind of fanfiction._

_I do not own any of the Naruto characters. I only own the OC and the story itself._

**~o0o~**

**_Thank you to the fantastic Ria D'Arcy; A new Beta whose flow of pieces astound me, and has made this chapter much readable. _Much,** **_much_ _readable. _**

**_~o0o~_**

**Asterisk symbols (***) indicate short/long time skips or scene changes.**

* * *

_My Ninja RuleBook! _

_Rule#2- Do not become allies with a person too quickly. You never know what tricks they might have up their sleeve._

* * *

Chapter 2:

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I woke up this morning to find my face buried into the carpet floor of my bedroom. I groaned and sloppily rolled over onto my back, wiping traces of icky drool from my face. Wasn't I supposed to be in my bed, and not on the hard floor? I thought about it warily. I couldn't think of a smart enough reason as I blindly groped the area around me for my blanket. All I came up with was empty air.

I yawned, sleep still calling my name and beckoning for my brain to stop working. But first, I wanted the warmth and comfort of my sheets. Summer mornings could be unbearably chilly, and all I had on was a thin T-shirt and shorts. Being on the ground didn't help me either, but it wasn't like my bed was more comfortable. The place I lived in didn't have heating or air conditioning. The sun was my only source of heat.

I peered out at my tiny, gray and barren room and there I saw it, the blankets sitting on top of my bed with a disfigured hollow indention in it. That was the supposed cave I was curled up into before I must have fallen off the bed. I glared at it, as if it would come floating back to me. The blankets were too far away and the process of fully waking up to stand and get them sounded very troublesome.

Realizing that the blankets were a lost cause, my eyes wandered in the opposite direction of the bed where a large beam of light greeted my pupils. I blacked out from the brightness momentarily. The light came in from my bedroom window, and judging from the hue it gave off, it was the first ray of morning. It was soft, gentle, and wispy. The ray of sunshine looked beautiful and oh so heavenly that I believed it was actually from heaven itself. It looked so nice and _warm._

Seconds passed by so slowly that it felt like minutes, and I thought I could stay in this spot forever. That is, until a cold draft made its way through me, whispering harshly in my ear and trailing its nasty fingers along my sides. _Screw it_. Screw my laziness. I bolted towards the spotlight and once I was under it I saw as the room around me changed. Dust particles danced in the air that I hadn't seen before, and the atmosphere was no longer gloomy and upsetting.

The sun's rays wrapped themselves around me as I curled up under them like a little disheveled, black-haired creature. It warmed my skin fully and was powerful enough to calm my mind. Soon, it even managed to reach itself all the way into the confines of my chest, caressing my heart tenderly and soothing the parts of my body that ached.

Maybe that's why I was on the floor this morning. My body knew what it was missing out on. Maybe, unconsciously, my mind knew what the sun had to offer me on this kind day.

I bet the sun had known of my troubles and lent its comfort and warmth in such a way I thought only my mom had been able to provide. Warmth was what I needed by my side. I needed it every night. And I'm not just talking about heat in general. It's the warmth you get when you are _loved._

Eventually I was coaxed back to sleep, but I couldn't help but wonder if I was supposed to _be_ somewhere right now.

(***)

In my next rude awakening I was still lying on the floor, but boy was I _sweating_. I quickly got up and away from the sweltering light I was under and thoughts rushed into my head, battling each other for dominance and attention. I felt disoriented from the heat so it took a second to reassemble my thoughts until I finally got the memories sorted straight.

My shoulders sagged. The sun worked hard to give us daytime. I guessed that's what I deserved for sleeping away precious daylight… _Right, Mother Nature?_ I thought.

Before I could process anything else, I had the throbbing urge to use the bathroom. I picked at my sticky, wet pieces of hair as I walked out through the hallway. The wooden boards beneath the carpet floor creaked. I opened the bathroom door softly, and I heard a noise from upstairs. Barely audible thumps as feet crossed the floor above me, setting itself in a neat, even tempo. I knew that was my neighbor from a floor above me, but noises in a silent place never failed to creep me out of my skin; ever since _that day._

Tremors ran up my spine as I used the bathroom, and I tried to finish up as calmly as I could. Then I zipped back into my room, quickly shutting the door behind me. I climbed onto my bed and lied on top of the large mound that was all blankets and pillows.

A strangled sigh left my lips, relieved I was in the safe cubicle of my room… but I was also disappointed. It was a whole 'nother day and there was nothing new to be happy about.

I lived in a very strange and noisy part of the village where I resided in the run-down apartment complex for orphans or independent citizens of all ages. If this place was rowdy, then surely that meant excitement and fun; a place full of 'new' things and events, correct? Not exactly. Waking up to annoying sounds wasn't my favorite thing. If I had gotten to choose where I wanted to live, I wouldn't have given this place a second thought. In fact, I think I hated it. However the lady that told me to live here didn't give my opinions a second thought and did not so much as care either. There was nowhere else to call home, so I couldn't help but accept it.

I had spent a total of two weeks in that very 'white' hospital until I was released at last. That day when I was finally going to get out of that god-forsaken room, a nurse had come to take me out to the receptionist's desk. I remember her asking me if I wanted someone to go and retrieve my things back at the Uchiha compounds. I guessed that was sensible since I didn't have any belongings or currency with me—all I had was my drawing and the hospital gown I'd been wearing—but it was still a rude question, and the opposite of sensible.

So instead of replying properly, I remember shutting myself off right in front of her, going mute. I wanted to snap at her. Why would you remind someone of the source of their sorrows? The nurse did happen to notice her mistake though, and she had started babbling on and on about what was going to happen to me.

She had explained that I was to live in a three-room apartment, with my place being on the second floor. I was free to do whatever I wanted, but only things that wouldn't get me in trouble; I had to make my own choices from now on and 'be a big girl', she said. I was also supposed to expect an envelope sent to my apartment every one or two weeks that would contain my lifeline called money.

After some more 'encouraging' words from her to end the encounter nicely, I had asked one more question which totally sapped away her mood. _Why were they helping me?_ I didn't even know any of these people. How did they seem to know all about me?

Unfortunately, the ditsy nurse had taken the question wrongly and told me that I should be grateful for the help I was receiving. I tried to explain to the dumb nurse what I truly meant, but she wouldn't hear of it. She had shoved a key and some papers into my hands, and literally left me stranded there in the front lobby.

She wasn't a very good nurse.

Then a guy twice my size had come up and started to escort me to my new _home_ that was miles away from the hospital. He showed me around, pinpointed the important stores, the nearest bulletin boards for news, the post-office, and the directions to take if I needed to see the Hokage.

I recalled my mind whirling at this information. Especially the last bit mentioned. I knew who the Hokage was, learning it from school and all and everything else he did, but wasn't the Hokage a really busy person? What would a kid like me need that required his precious time? I may not pay attention in class that often because it's boring history, but I knew I was right to be bewildered.

But I hadn't asked my large escort about it. He didn't look like he enjoyed accompanying me. Either it was because of an odd reason or that was just his normal expression, I couldn't tell. I had decided to forget about the Hokage thing, and let it slide. Maybe tour guides were supposed to give this piece of information?

Lastly, the guy showed me the nearest school from the apartment complex. It was a small, quaint and tannish building decorated with square windows here and there all the way up to its third floor. A rugged-looking sign stuck up from the ground with the words 'Citizen's School' inscribed.

My eyes had almost popped out of their sockets once I realized what that school was. It was the very same school I was currently attending; the school that I owed half a month worth of absents to. This was the school my parents had enrolled me in for as long as I could remember. _Citizen's School._

The school harbored only basic classes like math, writing, reading, and history for its students. I had been attending these courses for almost three years and counting, having my fair share of perfect scores and failing grades. The school was very plain with its teaching, and I felt like it was worthless and time-consuming to go there. My dad was a _ninja_, so wasn't I supposed to be one too? The courses the school had planned for its students held nothing about learning the arts of a nin. It was a normal school, for normal village children, nothing special. It had my dad's nasty work written all over it because it was his way of punishing me until I got my act straight enough to attend the ninja academy.

But now that my dad was gone, I wasn't sure when I was going to attend school again. It seemed so pointless, but looking back at it again did make me feel a little sad. I had friends in there that probably missed me and worried about my absence. _Maybe one day, I'll go back_, I promised myself, standing there beside my escort/tour-guide.

A few more sites to note and to memorize later, I had reached my final destination – the apartment complex. The towering building before me had intimidated me, and gave me the impression that it was modest and maybe not so bad-looking. That opinion changed when I walked into the lobby area. It was the complete opposite of fantastic. It was shabby and the wallpaper that stuck to the walls had little peels in them. The walls themselves also harbored a variety of scars that made me think of frequent fighting in this very same room. My tour guide and the lady at the front desk had started conversing, which ended up with me having to hand over the papers I had and alone, I'd went straight to my floor of the apartment, room number 125.

The small section I owned had only three rooms: a bathroom, kitchen, and bedroom, with absolutely nothing in each one of them. There were no decorations or extra furniture; just the necessary items needed for each room in order to be called a 'kitchen' or 'bedroom', etcetera.

The first day of settling in, I was fearful at the fact that I would be living by myself. I had thought about my survival and needs. Who would I get breakfast, lunch, and dinner from? Who would take me to and from school? Who would tuck me in every night? And more importantly, what if I needed help on something? Who would I go to? Then there was also the creepy idea that I'd be in my place from sunup to sundown from now on for the rest of my life with no one else but _myself. _Silence could be your worst enemy at times, I found.

But today, after about half a year with this new routine, the act of living alone quickly became old and mesmerizing. I might have never been able get over my fear of loneliness in the dark, but I had figured out how to solve most of my problems with a good amount of time.

It took me awhile to calculate how I was supposed to spend the money that I got from the anonymous adults. I tried to put the pieces of the puzzle together called 'organizing ones budget' to the best of my ability, and not squander the money carelessly like I had the first time around. I've never held money before, nevertheless been given money like that, so what would anyone expect? I was a little kid whose mind revolved around shiny trinkets and candy. Then I learned my way around this new side of the village, recognizing the food stands and general stores that had basic things like silverware, school supplies, and that maintaining-hygiene-crap. I had bought some of things that I remembered having back at my old house. Like the same-brand soap, toothbrush, and even the same pencils so that I could replicate that homey feeling and bring it into my new house. I had hoped to feel safer, but geez was I wrong. I felt even more nostalgic at times.

Life soon slowed down its pace until it was one I felt comfortable with. I got used to everything from money to surroundings, but I didn't go to school. I could handle my dilemma with living, but I couldn't bring myself to go anywhere that associated with my old life where my parents shared the other half. I had spent all of my days locked up in apartment 225, either lying in bed staring at the ceiling, or tracing my picture of the Uchiha crest over and over. I thought that had been the definition of my life since then, but it wasn't until a man came that changed it...

I rolled into a sitting position on top of my bed and got up to throw open the windows that worked on hinges. The man's words had fueled me, and it had given me strength. But to do what, exactly? I felt like I was forgetting something. I gawked out into the world and couldn't help but feel like I was supposed to be somewhere. What day was it? Where did I have to go?

Random people strolled from here to there below me. Some people walked with their little kids, and others held various items they'd just bought from the many shop stands. The sun sent its massive amount of heat down, and I felt my sweat coming back on my skin to irritate me. It was noon, judging by this heat, and it also meant lunchtime.

My stomach growled at the mention of food, and I noticed that I'd probably missed breakfast too.

_I woke up this morning, only to go back to sleep again. Then that means..._

I face-palmed so hard I think I left an impression of a hand on my face. I had just missed school, which broke my streak of attending school for about 6 months now. Why did this happen? I was doing so well, striving towards that one goal the Hokage had set up for me. That's right, the _Hokage._

I went back in time, re-living that one day when I thought I'd never see my friends again until …

(***)

… A knock had come at my door. It was sunrise. I was sitting out in the kitchen, eating my breakfast. I was shocked and terrified when it unexpectedly came like that. Who was it? I questioned. None of my friends knew where I lived, so was it a killer that had come to murder me senseless? I didn't move an inch until the door started opening by itself. That was when I literally lost my mind, bawling my eyes out and lying on the floor in a trembling ball like a wimp.

However, the man who came in wasn't a killer at all. He was beyond that, I discovered, when I had the courage to peep out at him. It was the Hokage. The Third Hokage _himself, _who I found was an old man covered in robes from the neck down, and the only skin exposed were his hands and aged head. He looked just like the pictures in the school textbooks!

He helped me up into a chair, and tried to comfort me by patting my head. That's all he did. Then he sat in the chair across from me, and conversed about life and how I was doing. I replied to every question to the best of my ability despite my hiccups and sniffles. He was the leader of the village I lived in, so I had put some trust into him. I was just confused on how to act. Did I have to act myself or did I have to put up a fake persona to please the 'mighty protector'? Apparently he knew who I was too, so did I have to act stoic?

Not long after, he brought up the subject of my deceased clan. That was when I immediately shut myself up. I erased all connections of trust. How did he know? How did _everyone_ know about this?!

However, he was only asking rhetorical questions, queries that made me think and want to try to improve myself. He said things like '_live your life to the fullest'_ and '_become a ninja to protect yourself and the village, make your parents proud'. _His pep talk had me going, and spiked my interest. I could become a ninja? Somehow, he'd known my troubles about my current school, and told me that I was to sign up for biology courses right away in order to catch up with the next graduating class of ninja. I was about to open myself back up to him, if only a little, to ask questions but he had already excused himself and left out the front door. I never saw him again.

The day after that, I finally went back to school, joining the science classes to learn about the ninja body…

(***)

… Up until present day. I was carrying out the Hokage's demands, not my dad's, so it was okay. If the _Hokage_ believed I could do it, then I would sure as heck try.

I went over to my dresser with only two drawers and thought I might as well try to make it to school then. I wanted to feel like I was doing something right at least, like I was headed in the right direction. The Hokage wanted me to live and become something in the future. I didn't want to disappoint him.

Yanking out the bottom drawer, I was met with an array of dull colored clothing ranging from pitch black to dusty gray. I had other colors too, but the color black really stood out in my mind. Just like that day back in the hospital. _That other kid…_

I picked out a random outfit, laid it on the ground, and closed the drawer before I pulled open the one above it.

The process of whipping open the top drawer every single day had become a habit of mine over the months. I needed to look at it, even if it was only for a millisecond, a blink of an eye. It was like my dad and his coffee: I had to have it done, or you wouldn't see me leaving anytime soon.

The contents of the top drawer revealed not clothes, but only the barren drawer itself except for one thing: the drawing I made at school on that grievous day.

People would probably laugh at this daily routine. I could think of the teasing I'd receive: _Why did this weird girl stare at a picture every day? It's not even drawn correctly!_

But this piece of art was special, so special it deserved its own drawer. I valued it. I also had more items that were important to me, but they were back in my old house and I refused to go back to the Uchiha compounds. _Not ever!_ I didn't want anything from my previous home, even if someone went there and brought it back to me.

Everything in there was considered cursed.

I picked up my drawing carefully. There was only one person in this world that was curious about it, and it was that boy from the hospital. I smiled, recalling that incident when he suddenly spoke up, scaring me out of my skin. He was stuck in limbo just as I had been, and I felt we had things in common. We didn't talk further after that though, because it didn't look like he wanted to. Then the day came when we were both released, and I never saw him again; the boy with the black hair, black eyes, and a black shirt.

_That's_ the reason why black stood out in my mind. That boy was almost like my hero, the savior of my depression. He made me appreciate what I had drawn, and that was enough. Looking at the drawing daily gave me some sort of faith. It assured me that one day, we _would _meet again, but the exact date when that would happen… was unknown.

I had wanted to ask him so many questions. I felt like he shared some sort of similarity with me. Could he also have been another sole survivor?

I gasped, dwelling on the possibilities, but then I shook my head. He wasn't wearing the Uchiha crest that day. Even when he was released from the hospital, I didn't see it on his back when he walked the other direction to who-knows-where. The theory couldn't be right, yet there were many possibilities as to his identity. He could have just been another orphan, another anti-social kid like the ones in my class. He must've gone to another school because I'd never seen him around _my _school before.

But it wasn't like I wore shirts with the Uchiha crest stitched onto it either. The only garments I had that bore the symbol were my festivity dresses back at the old house, hidden in the back of my closet.

I could remember this one time… when my mom and I were having a secret meeting, locked inside of my room. My dad wasn't present, because he had been out for the day, so my mom spoke softly in a flurry of words, things that she wanted to tell me in case he got back. She knew how my dad felt about me wearing the clan's symbol, and she really didn't like it one bit. She was on my side, she'd told me strongly, and that my father was just stressed. Suddenly, my stomach did cartwheels and I could sense oncoming tears.

I pounded my fist on the ground and placed my drawing back into and shut the drawer. _Let's not think about them right now, Souka. You're already pissed. And you were doing so well too, keeping that wall up. Don't you cry!_

In a daze, I wandered out towards the kitchen, the third and final room of my 'exquisite' home. The carpeted floor ended once you arrived at the kitchen, and it was visibly replaced with a firm, yet soft, rubbery texture that held intricate, miniscule flower designs on it that followed their own unique pattern. A circular coffee table complete with a pair of hard-wood chairs sat in the middle of the kitchen while the counters, sink, cabinets, and fridge took their spots on the right. And to top it all off, a window smaller than the one in my room fitted crookedly into the wall to the left side of the table.

I jerked open my refrigerator to reveal nothing. Absolutely _nothing_. My stomach growled once more, obviously displeased. I sighed, closed the pitiful fridge, and ransacked the cabinets to pull out a hidden stash of currency. I counted it all up and found that I could at least buy enough food to last me a week, three meals a day.

I pocketed a few bills and placed the rest of the stash back safely. I was quickly running out on cash, and if I remembered correctly, the next envelope should come next week. If not, then I didn't know what would happen. Maybe I'd starve.

Dealing with living, money, and just thinking about my problems angered me. There was so much I didn't _get_, so much I didn't _understand_. If I could get a stack of cash for every time I used the phrase 'I don't know' or 'I think', I'd be rich. But how I would spend all that money, I didn't know-

_There I go again, using those same words for the hundredth time!_ I stomped my feet and stormed out the door, still in my night-wear. I was frustrated. Who cared how I looked? I just needed food right away to ease my stomach and get my head out the dirty gutter.

But sadly, the gutter was a hard place to get out of once you were stuck there.

I rushed down the two flights of dusty stairs, my eyes threatening to drop sour tears. I flew out the front door of the apartment complex and ignored the receptionist lady completely. I couldn't greet her like I usually would right now. I was in a mood swing.

_I'm just a child, _I reasoned with my guardian up in the clouds, the ultimate being that controlled what happens in my life. _I'm eight for crying out loud! Who does this to kids? Giving them adult problems? Why _the heck _me?_

I smacked my hands against my eyes, rubbing at my tear-stained face, hiding it from the rest of the watching, observant world. I hovered near the apartment complex's wall and pushed my back against it, sliding down onto the concrete ground.

I hated myself! I hated my depression! I hated the new, stupid and emotional-wreck that was all me! I couldn't even make friends anymore, let alone hold existing ones. No one liked hanging around a bipolar sap. Even _I _wouldn't play with a person like_ me_.

I may have managed myself through six months and gone through this same exact routine every single day, but that was only because I was driven. I was determined to figure things out, and I had to live. I needed answers to questions that I couldn't solve, like: _Why did my parents die? Was it all somehow my fault, for being so disappointing? What would happen to me?_

The fire that had once existed within me was burned out though. The facts finally dawned themselves upon me. I didn't know what to do anymore. I had one current goal and it was to try to catch up with the rest of the graduating ninja, but now I wasn't so sure I could even do_ that_. I was never sure to begin with. Maybe my dad was right. I _did _have trouble focusing, and I didn't know how to fix it.

A tentative hand touched the top of my head and I automatically screamed at the person, making her flee with terror. Soon, I found out that it had been the receptionist lady. She had been trying to help me.

Tears dripped down my cheeks and chin. People were starting to stare, so I hugged my knees and bowed my head. No one could help alleviate this pain right now. No one_._ I just realized how useless I was, so how could anyone possibly give me relief from that?

I have never missed my parents so much. They were trying to fix me, weren't they? Because, to be a ninja, you had to be serious with the correct mindset. You couldn't play. That's what being a ninja was all about, according to my parents.

It's been a while since the last time I truly reflected on my mom and dad. I've been busy and hectic, trying to keep up with _myself_, and I couldn't risk sacrificing any time because of them. The thought of them not being here, right beside me to yell at me and get me going, would throw me into another world and it'd take hours for me to come back to earth. But I've been practicing, and eventually I learned how to cope with my parents' death, putting up mental barriers. Sometimes it worked, and sometimes it failed miserably.

I tilted my head to scan the vast blue horizon dotted with puffy clouds. If only I could talk with my parents, one last time. Even if my dad wouldn't favor me contacting him, I needed his parenting. It may have not been the best way to deal with your daughter, but at least she had friends, her happy moments, and especially the love of both of her parents.

I placed both of my palms together in front of me, praying to my guardian. I had a superstition, and probably many others, but one of them was praying. I thought that if I wished hard enough, my prayers and desires would come true.

_Please, Guardian up above with my parents. Send me a sign. Any sign at all! Give me a sign to let me know that I'm getting somewhere, and that my sadness isn't all that bad. Please help me focus._

Opening and closing my eyes to empty out the tears, I laid my hands on my lap, releasing the tension I didn't know I had from my shoulders. It was like I had just sent a letter that contained all of my secrets and burdens to a complete stranger, confessing my inner turmoil; and it felt good. It's as if a weight was lifted from my chest, and my eyes were free from their lenses. Everything was a little clearer, and no longer cloudy. Now I just had to wait patiently for my reply.

Voices of all pitches, tones, and volumes reached my ears for the first time since I'd come out of the apartment. I patted my unkempt hair and I struggled up to my feet, the feeling of fatigue crashing into my system. I yawned and stretched to ward it off, and then I checked to see if my money was still intact before I began my wavering stroll towards the nearest food stand. My stomach practically _begged_ for food.

I converged into a small crowd of women without much difficulty. They were spread out amongst themselves, picking at random fruits in a wooden cart and observing them and placing them back, looking for the perfect fruit.

_I thought this was the dumpling stand_, I huffed to myself. I did a short check around at the other stands, and found that the dumplings were actually at the stand across from here.

I pulled at my hair slightly. _Are you serious? _I thought with annoyance. If I didn't care about my safety as much I would have collapsed right here, right now, literally falling asleep on the dirt ground. I was just _that _lazy and tired.

Stifling a yawn with my hand, I began another trek to go across the packed, wide road, but then I paused. A commotion was coming from up the street, and it was really _loud._

My ears perked up and the feeling of sleep quickly drained itself out of my bones. I looked up the main road to see a kid with blazing yellow hair, running my way from what seemed like a bunch of angry people yelling after him. Of the six months I've lived here, I've never had _this_ happen before.

The people in the middle of the road started to disperse, but I didn't move. The event came nearer and nearer until I could hear what was being said, and my eyes widened with interest.

"Come back here, you brat!"

"Just wait until I get my hands on you!"

I was so tuned into what those men were yelling that when I was roughly pushed to the side of the road, I didn't react and landed flat on my behind, making my throat bounce. The angry mob rushed past me, whipping up dust behind them for me to cough up.

A random lady assisted me in standing up and then I patted myself to get rid of the dirt particles. I gave her a small smile of thanks and she nodded.

"Watch out next time, okay? That boy causes trouble everywhere he goes."

I didn't know how to reply so I nodded dumbly until she left. Shaking my head, I ran off after the quickly-disappearing horde of angry citizens and the single 'troublesome' kid. What did that lady know? But soon, as I was meandering through the now converging rivers of villagers, I heard a lot more of the same comments she'd made.

"Oh, it's just that boy, Naruto. Up to no good,_ again_. He's nothing special."

"Did you see what he did to the houses down the street? How rude!"

"He's such a pest!"

At that particular comment about the houses, I whipped my head at the mentioned buildings sitting alongside the main road. I thought the villager meant the houses down the street behind me, but apparently not when I saw the lines and streaks of color cover the buildings all around me.

Most people would shake their heads at this, but I found myself bursting with laughter as I jogged along. It was so ridiculous and so uncommon that I couldn't help but be amused and wonder how that boy did this skillful act. I thought it was pretty impressive. It looked like all he did was run a huge paintbrush across the buildings, like it was just him and a big canvas.

Not long after seeing that amazing feat, I saw his familiar tuft of bright yellow hair, but he was no longer being chased. He had his head bowed down, standing in the middle of the street with a bucket of paint in one hand and a paintbrush in the other. A whole crowd of villagers seemed to be forming around him.

I came closer to stop only a few feet from the horde of citizens, picking out a few of their shouts of annoyance. I couldn't believe my ears at the pure cruelness of the dialogue.

"You monster!"

"You're such a disappointment to this village!"

"Get out of here already won't ya'?"

There was so many voices talking in unison that it sounded like they were protesting towards one huge cause, and it was that boy. All he did was play a little prank. Surely it wasn't that big of a deal, especially to insult someone like that? I shoved my way into the crowd and weaved through to get to the boy. I wanted to see his face.

I reached the inner circle the villagers had formed, and my heart panged once I saw the boy's expression. He wasn't crying, but he looked so sad; like he was in grief. It was obvious his feelings were hurt.

Anger spiked up in my gut. I had the urge to give these stupid villagers a piece of my mind. Didn't they see they were _hurting _him? But just as I was about to open my big mouth, the boy ran off towards an alleyway, his head still cast downward. I prayed to the sky that the villagers wouldn't chase after him.

Luckily, they didn't even budge once he was out of sight. They just resumed their normal outings as if nothing happened, save for a few remaining citizens.

"You're all mean people," I muttered under my breath as I tried to track down the boy, sprinting after him. No one probably heard me, but whatever. I wanted to let that out of my system somehow.

Sweat caked my face and soaked the back of my shirt along with my underarms. The side of my stomach pinched itself as I ran, the painful strikes shooting up my throat from lack of oxygen and my nose burned. This boy was fit. I've been running all this way, miles away from my place to catch up with him, yet I reckoned he'd been to almost every part of the village today. What was his name? One of the villagers had mentioned it earlier, hadn't they?

I thought I was going to give up trying to find him, but then I saw a lone figure sitting up against a wooden fence. It was the boy with yellow hair. He had his head hidden behind his folded arms and buried between his knees.

I tentatively walked towards him, my strap-on sandals making these crunchy audible sounds with the gravel. I tried to alleviate my panting as I advanced towards him, because I didn't want to accidently frighten him away. He was hurt, I could tell. Not physically, but mentally. _Like me. _He must have had past experiences with these mean people.

I reached out my hand, wanting to comfort him the way I knew how to. I was only inches away from petting his hair, but his arm struck out, smacking my hand to the side. My eyes widened as I stared at his face that harbored rivulets of tears trailing down his cheeks. His blue eyes were large and radiant, as if he had an infinite number of tears saved up for the next cruel years to come. His face scrunched up.

"What do you want?" He spat. "Are you here to tell me how much of an idiot I am? How I'm so weird? Well, I'll let you know that I don't care! Just leave me alone!" He roughly shoved his head back into the crook of his arms and he wept, his sobs resonating down the alley.

I sat down in front of him almost too rapidly because of my slight annoyance. _Why is this boy so mean? _My brow twitched but I squashed the feeling by firmly crossing my legs. I was here to counsel him, not yell at him.

"I don't think you're weird," I told him, well, more like stated. He instantly muted his weeping and looked at me sniffing, his eyes looking strangely hopeful.

"What'd you say?"

"I said- you're not an idiot. Those dumb villagers don't know what they're talking about. I thought your painting was pretty good." I backtracked. He did do that, right? I was pretty sure he did, judging by the prideful expression on his face.

"Really?" He asked, incredulous at my words. He got into the same cross-legged position as me and cocked his head, giving me the biggest smile I'd ever seen on a guy's face. A smile tugged on the corners of my mouth, and before I intended to, I returned his full-out grin. His happiness was infectious.

"Yeah!" I shouted, "You should've seen the looks on their faces!" I made a show of mocking the villagers' faces, ranging from disbelief to terrified expressions and Naruto maniacally guffawed at all of them. My chest welled up and I felt accomplished. I made someone happy, after all of these months. _Was I becoming myself again?_

He dramatically punched his fist in the air and yelled in victory like he'd won something. He stood and I copied the action. His hand jutted out towards mine.

"My name's Naruto!" He said, grinning so hard his eyes became mere slits on his face. "What's yours, kid?"

"I'm not a kid," I muttered, the nasty side of me returning. But then I caught myself and swiftly laughed at his enthusiasm. My alter-ego I'd assimilated over the months was probably why I'd warded so many people off. _Don't mess this up, Souka, _I reprimanded. Then I grabbed his waiting hand and shook it with maybe too much jubilance.

"My name is Souka! S-O-U-K-A. _So-Ka!_"

He raised his brow. "Why'd you say it so long like that?"

"Uh-" I said, trailing off. Note to self, I needed to work on being under pressure. I shrugged indifferently.

"I've always done my introductions like that, but with less shouting. Teachers never get my name right and they say it wrong." Part of the lie was actually true, but I didn't say anything further.

Naruto took his hand away from mine and suddenly his smile turned into a grimace. He started walking in a random direction with his hands behind his head. He groaned loudly.

"Ah, you're so weird," he droned.

At first, I winced at those familiar words, getting that nostalgic feeling of being left behind, but I quickly caught onto Naruto's playful gesture. He was only joking. I ran up to him and met his pace.

"Hah, you're weird too." I rolled my eyes. "So, where are we going?"

He stopped in his tracks and blinked at me.

"What do you mean?"

I placed my hands on my hips, grinning awkwardly.

"I'm gonna follow you, if that's okay?" It seemed harmless to ask, because if his idea of fun was pranking, then I could really use that time of fun too.

"I...okay," He drew out uncertainly, then he suddenly grinned once more. "Alright, come on! I wanna show you the coolest place in the world!"

"Coolest place in the world?"

"It's a secret! You're gonna have to catch me to find out!" And he sped off, laughing his almost too enthusiastic laugh. I shook my head in disbelief. How did he have all of that energy? My muscles were weeping to be rested and I still haven't eaten.

"Naruto, wait!" I shouted after him, trying to run but failing terribly. I stuck to walking as my stomach rumbled. I ignored it though, pushing it to the back of my mind. Forget food, and forget those envelopes full of currency. Forget my unclear sense of direction in life. I haven't been this happy since ever.

That was it! I needed a _break_… and maybe I'd get back to my old routine of surviving one day. But after a day of fun like every kid should have. This was my time to get away from the world. This was my time to enjoy.

I smiled up at the blazing sun and the lazy clouds drifting by, wiping the drops of sweat from my face. Was that all I needed to do? To have a friend in someone and make some effort? Was this the sign I had asked for? I clasped the palms of my sticky hands together, shutting my eyelids. It was probably too soon to say anything, but to heck with it! I wanted to let them know.

_Thanks for the sign, mommy and daddy. I'm glad you're watching out for me!_

..

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**A/N:**** Reviews: I'd usually reply to each one personally by PMing but all I have are guest reviews which unfortunately I cannot do anything about. But one review I'd like to address publicly.**

**Ceralyn- Thank you for your review and for catching my very obvious mistake in the first chapter. Yes, her name is Souka, and I think I must've forgotten that I even mentioned her name at all. How humiliating haha xD**

**Thank you to all of my reviewers, you've all made me proud of my work and strive to post the next chapter! :) And the followers too of course. I'm very happy you enjoy this story as much as I do. I'd say this latest chapter's purpose is to go in depth of the Souka's character. I tried not to rush my story as much, so this was the product of that attempt xD**

**Another note before I'm off to work on the next chapter: I'm also going to be updating my Author's Bio page every two days because of a bulletin board I'm going to add to it that will let guest reviewers and followers know when the next chapter will be posted, if I'm having a block, etc. If I don't update my Bio exactly two days after the last update, then you'll know something's wrong with me, either school-wise or practically life-wise.**

**Until next time!**


	3. -Chapter 3

_CAUTION! What you're about to read is an OC Naruto fanfiction. If you do not respect these types of stories then I suggest you stop reading and take your opinions elsewhere._

_This story is dedicated to those who like this kind of fanfiction._

_I do not own any of the Naruto characters. I only own the OC and the story itself._

**~o0o~**

**_Thank you to my brilliant Beta: Bree Avalon, For her adept Revising and Thoughts on this Chapter._**

**_~o0o~_**

**Asterisk symbols (***) indicate short/long time skips or scene changes.**

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_My Ninja RuleBook! _

_Rule#3-You must keep your cool in the most messed up situations._

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Chapter 3:

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...

..

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Of all the times I've slept on this bed, last night's slumber was the best. I didn't have any difficulty at all trying to sleep last night. When I had come home to the darkness and stillness the lonely apartment offered to me, it was surprisingly okay. Maybe it's because I was too preoccupied with how the day turned out to be. I had been exhausted, yet satisfied to the core.

I thought about yesterday's events as I lay awake on the bed, aware that a new day was beginning outside my window. Who would have thought communicating with the heavens would actually work? I asked for a way, and they replied by literally thrusting Naruto into my face. If the outcomes of praying always turned out like this, then I'd definitely practice the superstition more. _I can live, _I thought happily. _I can do this. Naruto can help me through it, and possibly his parents too. Maybe they could give me some pointers on how to live?_ I pulled the blankets wrapped around me closer to my neck, nuzzling my face into it. I puckered my lips at the idea. _But does he even have parents? I'll ask him later. _

I focused my attention to the incredible, comfortable sensation the bed harbored. It was bearable, and just the right temperature. It was _perfect_ to sleep on for once.

I planned on getting a few more minutes of shut-eye until a booming knock came from the front door out in the kitchen. I gasped and nearly tumbled down onto the floor from the position I was in.

"Souka! Are you in there?" A pitchy voice yelled between knocks. After a few more hits, it stopped and the muffled voice added, "I really hope this is the right door..."

Scrambling to my feet, I crept outside to the kitchen area, silently contemplating whether or not I should answer it. It took me some inner strength to fight off the faint fear in the pit of my stomach. I was doing pretty well maintaining the anxiety though, recalling my last reaction to the hokage's greeting.

I grabbed the nearest object by the table and ducked behind a chair. My voice quavered horribly as I tried to sound intimidating. "W-who i-is it? Tell me!"

The unknown person replied hotly, "It's Naruto!"

I sighed, relieved, and then I mistakenly lost the grip on the glass plate I was holding and it plopped onto the floor. I yelped, but then I was shocked to find it not shattered to pieces. I had to thank the rubber flooring for that. I shook my head and placed the plate back on the table, and afterward opened the door for a bouncy Naruto to enter.

He instantly roamed his eyes over my place. "Woah. Uh, this is where you live?" He said, inspecting the bare kitchen walls, the shabby floor, and the dusty counter. "It looks like a pigsty." I quietly scolded myself for not cleaning up. I wasn't used to that sort of thing, but it wasn't like I knew how to.

"Well, not my fault," I murmured, rubbing my eyes to get the gritty, weird stuff out of them. "What're you doing here anyways?"

He looked at me as I walked past him to use the bathroom. I wanted to fix and clean myself before talking any further. I needed to look somewhat presentable in front of my new friend; and the impression my dirty realm gave off didn't help.

There was no immediate reply and it made me look back at him with concern. He was staring at the floor with his head downcast. It vaguely reminded me of yesterday's incident with the villagers.

"Hey, Naruto. What's wrong?"

He didn't respond, so I replayed back what I'd asked earlier, '_What're you doing here anyways?'_

I tensed. Guilt and anger bubbled inside of me somewhere. Did I unintentionally sound rude? Did he take that the wrong way..?

"Naruto, that's not how I meant it," I exclaimed, trying to clear up cloudy atmosphere. I babbled frantically, "I don't mind you being here. In fact, I'm happy you're here. It gets lonely. Really lonely."

I searched his face to see if that somehow helped him. We spent the whole evening together yesterday. Didn't he get that we're friends?

He brought his head up and we locked eyes. I fidgeted slightly, not knowing how to exactly deal with confrontations like this. He said quietly, "I don't have that many friends, Souka. And everyone hates me."

Pity rose in my stomach, and I found I was confused on what to say. "I..." I tried beginning, but I was at a loss for words.

He stood up from his chair and clenched his hands, head still downcast. "Why don't you hate me like everyone else does?"

I sent him a stern look, even if he couldn't see it. "Naruto, you weren't like this last night," I said carefully. Then I grew very uncomfortable. "Why are you asking me all of these weird questions? Is this some sort of friendship test?"

"No!" He said it so strongly it startled me. "Just tell me the answer. _Why?_"

I growled. Screw my dried up drool, and screw my morning breath.

I marched up to him and shook his shoulders with all the force I could muster. "Naruto! Snap out of it! I don't even know you that much yet, so why in the world would I hate you? Did the fact that we hung out yesterday mean nothing?" I took a deep breath and he looked up.

"Well, I guess it did mean something." He replied uncertainly. "It's just that...you're not under a spell or anything, are you? Were you forced to be my friend or anything like that?"

"What?" I retorted sharply.

I withdrew my hands and crossed my arms slowly, replaying the words he'd just utter. No one has ever asked me _that_ question before.

"...What?" I repeated. But this time I questioned his sanity. "No, I'm not. Why the heck would you say that?"

"I heard the villagers whispering that when I tried to find your house this morning."

There was a moment of silence as I tried to take the information in. I groaned when I came to the realization that Naruto seriously doubted our friendship. Was his reputation really that bad that people even thought I was under a spell?

I offered him a soft smile. "Don't listen to those jerks. I'm your friend 'cause I wanted to. I'm not under _any _spell." I enveloped him with my arms and gave him a slight bone-crushing embrace, just to get my point across. I pulled back and sighed. _I have to be more cautious around Naruto from now on._

"Souka, I-I" He stuttered.

"What?" I prodded him. "You're gonna say thanks? It's okay, I know you're thankful. It doesn't matter-"

"Well, yeah, but... it's not that," he said. "It's your breath...it...it-"

I face-palmed and my face started to heat up. "Don't say it! I already know!"

"-it _reeks_! Ah!"

(***)

Once I'd change into my normal, black clothes for the day, gotten all of my things together for the school day ahead, and brushed my teeth _vigorously_, Naruto and I headed towards Ichiraku's Ramen Noodle shop down the road from my apartment. Apparently I'd promised Naruto that we'd eat there again last night for breakfast, which explained why he had come banging on my door this morning.

As we walked, I noticed that his movements were extremely tense and brisk, like he was on edge and possibly one nerve away from blowing someone off. I had the friendly idea to ask him why he was like that, but then I heard an obnoxious villager voice his thoughts loudly as he walked past us.

"Good for nothin' dumb pests- not good to this village at all-"

I whirled around, about to give him a piece of my mind, but then I saw Naruto out of the corner of my eye looking shaken and nervous. Were the villagers the source of his discomfort?

Slowly, I turned back around and breathed in and out, willing myself to not go and chase the rude man down. I shouldered my bulging backpack and thought of Naruto. _So this is what he must've gone through this morning._

"Hah, stupid man. They're all dummies," I said, directing it at Naruto, who in turn looked surprised. It was loud enough for anyone in hearing range to pick up as well. "Let's go, I'm starving. Aren't you?"

He bobbed his head eagerly, and we continued walking down the middle of the road where it was mostly bare save for a few pedestrians. As soon as we'd make eye contact with them though, they'd disperse and get out of our way either because of my glares or Naruto's reign of terror and mischief. Naruto didn't seem to mind though, and admittedly, he seemed used to it now that I've made it clear to him that I was okay with his reputation.

The ramen place was really far away, I'd noticed, so I tried making conversation. I've been meaning to ask him some questions too, so right now was a good time. All we did was eat last night and talked about meeting up once more.

I thought about asking him about his parents, but then I decided not to. Asking him about his personal life would just end up with me having to explain my part too, so I stuck to the topic of school.

"Where's your backpack?" I began with a simple question to lead up into the more important ones. "Don't you go to school too?"

"Yeah, I go! But why would I need a dumb bag on my back?"

"Um, to hold your things? You don't bring anything to school?"

"No, the academy has that stuff for you—pencils, paper, food—I thought you knew that-"

"You-you go to the academy?" I exclaimed. My eyes widened. More questions bombarded my mind as I tried to keep my calm. Naruto looked very bewildered as I kept going, "You're a ninja?!"

He smiled brightly and did a random pose. "You bet I am! And it's awesome!"

A weird squeal made its way out from my throat and I covered my mouth. I couldn't believe this. I've never met another person my age that went to the academy. I only knew the normal village kids, but I didn't really care about _them_. I've actually made a friend, and to think that he goes to the academy too! I went through all of the possibilities that could happen over the years until graduation. I could learn so many things, and get so much insight. Why hadn't I thought of this before? This was great! I was going to catch up and-

"Are you okay?" Naruto said, waving his hand in front of my face. "You're acting really weird."

"Teach me! I mean-tell me! I mean- I," I stumbled through my words. I couldn't figure out just what to ask him, until he slapped a hand on top of my mouth.

"Souka! We're here!" He pointed to Ichiraku's, which was right in front of us. "I'll tell you later once we finish eating!"

The ramen shop was basically part of the man's house who owned the place. Another floor sat on top of the shop. A large lantern hung by the entrance, which bore an intricate symbol on it. The entrance wasn't just a doorway, but a huge space. To enter, we ducked under the banners that hung from the ceiling.

One single, long counter that ran horizontally met our view, and stools lined up beside it. It was like a bar that took up the whole shop. As usual, the old man I'd met last night who served us, was here again, a grin plastered on his face.

"Naruto! Souka!" He boomed cheerfully. "Come, come. What would you like?"

We placed our orders. This was a ramen shop, so of course I wanted to order ramen. This was their signature dish here. I asked for a small bowl because of my budget and stomach capacity. Naruto said the 'usual' as he would call it.

Once the old man had taken our orders and disappeared behind the curtains, I spoke. "So Naruto, how's being a ninja like? Have you guys started learning the physical stuff yet?"

He leaned into the counter and thrummed his fingers against it. I could tell he was hungry. "Huh? What's 'physical' mean?"

"It means, uh…you know what? I don't know. I just heard my gym teacher saying it. But I think it means running around, jumping, throwing stuff; you know, action. So are you guys learning how to jump everywhere and toss things like all ninja do? And go on missions?" At least, that's what I knew my dad did. That's all ninjas did, right?

Naruto guffawed at my questions once he understood my rambling, "Are you serious? That's all for _after _you graduate. We're not even ninja yet. Even _I _know this! Don't you go to school?" He pounds the table with laughter, over-dramatizing how silly my questions were.

I slumped in my seat. "You told me earlier that you were a ninja though, you liar. And I don't go to ninja school like you do. I don't go to the _academy_!" I yelled at him, slightly embarrassed and offended. I was a tad jealous too. He stopped laughing, and a lady peeked out from the other room, wondering what all the noise was about.

"Sorry," I mumbled. The lady nodded and returned back to the other room.

"Oh," Naruto said. "No wonder I haven't seen you before. Then how old are you?"

"I'm eight. What about you?"

"The same. But you don't look 'eight' to me. Are you sure you're not six or maybe five?"

The corner of my mouth twitched. "We're the same height, Naruto. Why would you say that?"

"Because you're so scrawny! And maybe it's also the fact that I don't see you that often. All of the people in my class are the same age as me, I think." He poked his chin thoughtfully. "Why don't you go to the academy if you wanna be a ninja so much?"

I paused and cocked my head. "That's a very good question," I've just realized. "I don't know. I guess the thought never came to my head. All the hokage told me to do was to take extra classes in order to catch up with you academy people. He didn't say anything else after that."

"The hokage? That old man with the red hat and red dress?" Naruto queried.

I laughed, imagining the hokage in an actual red dress. "They're called robes, Naruto, not a dress. But yeah, that sounds like him. He wasn't wearing a hat when he came to my place though."

His eyes sparkled. "He talks to me too!"

I scrunched up my face, shocked that the hokage talked to so many kids. Did he do that with everyone?

I wanted to ask more questions, but then our bowls of piping hot noodles came. Naruto shouted with glee as we thanked the man, and dug into our breakfast for the day. I momentarily forgot all about the questions I wanted to ask because the ramen was so filling and aromatic. It wiped out everything in my head, and all I thought about was how delicious it was. I wondered why I didn't have this last night.

I was only halfway through my bowl until Naruto let out a satisfied sigh, and his utensils clanked into his empty bowl. I stopped to look at him patting his stomach, the noodles still in my mouth. I coughed, almost choking on my food.

"You're already _done_?" I squeaked, rubbing my throat. He only gave a cheeky grin in response. I saw the old man shake his head, chuckling.

"Naruto's stomach is a big mystery to me too, Souka. I don't think I'll ever solve it either," the man laughed heartily. I returned back to my meal, but my face wouldn't form back to its neutral expression. It remained incredulous.

(***)

Once I was done eating, we paid our bills and ducked under and out of the shop, waving our goodbyes. I breathed in the fresh morning air and sighed. The world was beginning to get a lot more beautiful every passing day. I patted my backpack, remembering school.

"What time is it, Naruto?" I said as we stood there, ignoring the looks of some of the passing villagers. Naruto seemed to be tolerating them now. I guess he was only worried that I'd run away from him or something. I looked at his wrist. "Oh, wait. You don't have a watch to know the time, do you?"

He shook his head. "I don't, but..." He shot his hand into one of his hidden short pockets that I didn't know was there, and pulled out a stocky rectangular, battery-powered clock. "I have this!"

"You keep that around with you?" I said, raising a brow. A smile tugged on the corners of my lips.

"Yeah, 'cause I don't have a watch," he replied, like it was the obvious answer. He shrugged and I laughed aloud.

Taking a long look at his bulky clock, he informed, "It's like around eight. I still have an hour left before school starts." He groaned.

I nodded. "Me too."

"Hey, I know! Let's go visit the hokage!" He said, pulling my hand and pointing in a random direction.

"What?" I exclaimed, yanking my hand back. I tried to ignore his hurt expression. "No, why? He's a busy person, Naruto. What would he do with kids like us?"

I imagined the third hokage dressed in his ancient robes while stamping documents, congratulating warriors, jumping from roof top to roof top, and fighting monsters in the night while we slept soundly in our beds. I imagined him leading our village in the wars my history class discussed about. Naruto and I didn't need to waste his time any further.

I studied Naruto's face, waiting for the slightest answer, but he only laughed nervously and rubbed the back of his head. The cheeks on his face turned a visible pink.

He spilled his words out in a rush, "I want to talk to him about switching you to the ninja academy instead of going to that dumb citizen's school so we can go to the academy together!"

It was my turn to blush slightly from embarrassment. "You'd do all that, just so I can go learn with you? You'd talk to the hokage just for that?"

"I mean, yeah, sure. He's not that big a deal. I can beat him anytime, anywhere!" He yelled fearlessly, and immediately all the villagers gave us a glare. I shook my head and pushed Naruto forwards, making him walk.

"Alright, let's go Naruto," I coaxed him. Then I added in a lower tone, "Your big head is probably why everyone hates you."

He glared at me, his eyes strangely becoming just two diagonal slits that sat on his face. "What'd you say?"

"Nothing," I managed to put out before I burst into a fit of giggles at his new pair of eyes. "Just lead the way there, Naruto. I kind of want to have a word with the hokage too about switching." I sighed. "Maybe he'll agree to it too since _he's_ the one who suggested the whole thing anyway."

(***)

"Naruto, just what are you talking about?" I heard a tired voice say. I clutched tighter onto the roof's tiles of the hokage's office, afraid that if I let go just for a second I'd go tumbling down and meet my doom.

I stifled a groan as I dropped my head onto the upturned side of my arms. "The hokage's not letting me switch, is he?" I whispered harshly to Naruto, who was standing easily on the roof and facing the hokage who was residing inside of his office. How was that yellow-head doing this so easily? Sure it was just a roof, but the thought of standing on it was frightening. I much rather preferred tree-climbing. It offered more support for the body.

My stomach was literally fried lying against the hot orange tiles. The thin shirt I had on didn't do any good, and it was black too, making my experience with the baking sun none too enjoyable.

_I thought Naruto told me sneaking up onto the hokage's roof was the easy way, not the hard way!_

I sighed almost too loudly and the hokage's head popped out the window that bordered the second floor of his enormous headquarters. I could see the glare his bald spot was giving off due to the sunlight.

"Ah, Souka," he greeted raspingly, "What brings you here? I take it you're friends with Naruto?" He sounded very surprised at this, and I smiled sheepishly. _Wow, even the hokage doubts Naruto's friend-making skills._

"Good morning, o-great hokage," I squeaked out. "We're not stopping you from fighting monsters, are we?" Trying to be formal and clutching on for dear life wasn't exactly easy. Especially if the surface you were lying on was baking hot.

"Hey! Old man! I was talking about Souka; she wants to switch to the academy!" Naruto exclaimed, pointing at me with both of his hands repeatedly.

"Okay Naruto," the hokage chided him like his own child. "But why don't you come into my office first, along with Souka? The poor girl's suffering."

Naruto looked over at my sweltering form and his eyes widened as if he'd just noticed me there. He offered me an apologetic smile and helped me step into the hokage's office through the glass windows.

I yanked off my backpack as I scanned the room. It was very spacious, and a bit bare but it looked so organized with piles of papers stacked neatly on his desk, the only piece of furniture in the room besides his padded chair. Office gadgets of many sorts took their own designated spots on the hokage's desk. I noticed a few scrolls sprawled out on top as well.

Once we were situated and I was a little bit cooler, the hokage motioned for us to stand beside him by the windows. Naruto stood next to the senior, and I took my place next to Naruto on the other side.

I didn't know the hokage's office was so high up. I could see the whole village from here almost, all the way out towards the borders of the village, which kept it safe from the outer forests. I gave myself the task of finding my apartment complex, but I quickly tossed the impossible mission aside.

"So, what concerns did you have, Naruto? Is something troubling the two of you?" The hatless hokage asked us politely, just as I'd remembered him. He observed us critically, maybe not over the fact that we're friends.

"Please switch Souka over to the academy, third hokage! She hates her school!" Naruto begged, bouncing on his feet.

I immediately tried to subvert the lie, "What? No I don't-"

The hokage held up a single, rough hand as if to silence us. "It's okay if you feel ill about your current school, Souka," he assured me. "It's to be expected since you _are_ from a descent of great bloodlines. But can I ask you why you were placed in that citizen's school in the first place?"

My breathing hitched at the mention of my bloodline, and I took a quick peek at Naruto to see his reaction, expecting to see the worst; but however, he seemed pretty intrigued by this. Slowly, it came across my mind that Naruto didn't know a thing about me.

I gulped silently. I guess he'd find out now, and hopefully won't be so judgmental. I divulged my secret shakily, "My dad put me in that school because he thought I was goofing off too much. He said I had to get my act straight before I could think of trying to be a ninja."

The hokage's wrinkled eyes widened ever so slightly. "Your father put you into that school for three years just to punish you?"

I quickly heated up from humiliation, but I managed to frown at the sorrowful fact. "He didn't like me very much."

"I see," the hokage said wistfully, staring at the vast village outside the window. "Do you still want to follow your father's orders?"

Confused, I looked up at his face and he did the same, examining mine. "But he's-he's," I tried to reply, but then I stopped. My heart began to ache.

_But he's dead._

"I...don't know how to reply to that, sir," I mustered the words out softly, casting my head down, "But I guess, no. I don't."

He sighed warily. "Do you remember our last encounter, Souka?"

I winced and frowned. How could I not forget that? He was my very first visitor. "Yes," I said, rubbing my hands awkwardly. "But I thank you for it, hokage! Your words made me want to become a ninja, like you said I should be. I'm taking the biology classes you told me to take, but is there any way I can attend the academy along with Naruto now? Plus we're getting to be good friends, and we can both learn from one another-"

Naruto butted in, curling his lip. "What can I learn from _you_?"

"How to not have a big head," I retorted. "You'd be surprised at how much I know about discipline."

"Psh, yeah right!"

"Alright, alright," the hokage chuckled gruffly. "Children, let's not bicker here. There are elders here besides me who could use some peace and quiet."

Naruto and I apologized meekly, but then Naruto piped up, at a lower volume this time. "Does that mean Souka can go?"

"Oh, I wasn't saying 'alright' because of that, Naruto. I was just saying that to calm you down," he corrected, chuckling once more. He took a step towards his desk and grabbed a brown pipe sitting at the edge of the table. The pipe instantly gave off puffs of smoke as he blew into it. "As for Souka's request, I'm afraid I can't do that. There's not enough room in the academy at the moment. It's packed to brim with students, and we can't afford to provide for any more additional ones."

I rushed up to him, standing besides Naruto. "But hokage! I'm the same age as Naruto, which means we're in the same graduating class. Can't you make some room? And I'll work for it too. I'll get a job somewhere, and pay for my own things like I already do. I want to be a ninja and make something of my life like you said! I want to live it to the fullest!"

Naruto looked at me curiously while the hokage was pensive. He had no idea how much I wanted this. I wondered if I somehow convinced him with my breath-taking attempt at persuasion.

"Souka, you do not have to be in the academy to increase your knowledge. In fact, as of now, the classes in the academy aren't even beginning to teach its students about the basics of being a proper ninja yet. You will do fine with your current schedule."

"But-" Naruto and I both pleaded in unison.

"I'm not done yet," he mumbled with the pipe in his mouth. "It's true that Naruto could teach you more accurately, coming from a close friend, and that you could lend Naruto some manners, but all of that doesn't have to happen in the academy. In addition, growing up to be a ninja is much more than just learning from _others_. Shinobi learn from _themselves_ first. And you, Uchiha, Souka, have not accomplished your feelings yet."

Naruto gasped and I flinched at the mention of my last name. I jerked my head to the other direction, away from Naruto and shielding my face from my audience. I clenched my hands tightly in frustration.

_I never want to hear that name again._

I bowed my head, creating a curtain of hair. I was doing it again. I was shutting myself away from him. Why did the hokage keep bringing this subject up like it was nothing sensitive?

"Please don't say my last name, hokage," I whispered.

"Souka, you're an Uchiha?" Naruto said, incredulous.

"Didn't you hear me say not to say that word?" I nearly yelled at him, my hair whipping across his face. He recoiled and I slapped a hand across my mouth. _I swore I'd be nicer to Naruto. What'd I just do? This meeting's going way downhill. There's no way up._

"This is what I'm referring to, Souka; your anger and your stage in recovering. It seems you can't move on to the next one. You have to try to move on, or at least remain your composure whenever your clan is mentioned. You have to get over this obstacle first before even graduating, or you wouldn't be able to handle it. This is a serious matter."

I grimaced at the news. "You make it sound as if my life is in danger."

"It will be, but I can't say yet," the hokage said, shaking his head. "However I will say that you are a _particular_ person. You need to be able to control yourself, for the sake of your future-"

"What? That doesn't make any sense, why me-"

"Souka, stop interrupting me," he said calmly. I let out an irritated sigh and slumped to the ground. There always has to be a problem with me, hasn't there?

"I have a solution," he offered after a pregnant pause. I snapped my head back up, my mind alert for good news. "I will let you graduate with the current class, which is approximately four years from now. You will work extremely hard for this, and while you're doing that, I will send you a tutor from the academy to assist you in learning, and to give you tests every now and then; which will be the same tests Naruto will be taking. You'll learn everything the academy learns, including the physical ties, but the only difference is that you'd be in a different building with no peers."

_I really feel like he's giving me a sentence to the dungeons. _I groaned incessantly at the torture he was assigning me. I was looking forward to attending a school with Naruto in it.

"What about my current school? Can I drop out of it?" I didn't mind quitting the school at all. No one would care anyways. Nobody would notice, save the people who checked attendance.

"I'll tell you the details on a later date," the hokage said.

I nodded curtly and he smiled.

"Good. Now as for your fear, I want you to go back to the Uchiha compounds and retrieve me an article of clothing. It _must _bear the Uchiha symbol. The cloth will be proof to me that you've overcome your flaw. It will also be your requirement in order to gain a tutor from me. I also want you to wear it during graduation-"

"You want me to go _where _and to do _what_?" I exclaimed, realizing at the last second what he was ordering me to do.

"Souka, I assure you the compound has been evacuated clear of the bodies and debris that remained from the massacre. It's safe to go there."

I shut my eyes instantly, and willed myself not to tear up. I bent my stubby fingers, digging my nails into my skin to squash the rising grief.

"I believe this is the only way right now that will benefit you the most. Every rising shinobi must overcome their troubles and issues from time to time, and your time is now. You can't run away from your name, Souka. Embrace it, because every shinobi faces change, and they must take it in willingly. You have to _change."_

At those words, I suddenly saw my father's face instead of the hokage's. Those words were all too familiar. Change. That's all my father wanted me to do. _Change myself._

My father smiled, and I blinked his twisted face away to reveal the hokage's worn out smile. _Dad never smiled._

"Well, it seems like you understand so I'll leave you to it. I hope to see your face at graduation day, Souka, proudly wearing the symbol of your clan too. And remember; take all the time you need to overcome this. But the sooner the better, of course." He dipped his hand into the lap of his chair to fish out a very wide, cone-looking hat that read what looked like 'hokage' embroidered on the front. He placed it on top of his head and it fit nicely. He looked very much like royalty with the extra accessory.

The  
hokage patted our heads with his eyes crinkled happily. "I must say that I'm surprised you two are friends. I could have never suspected."

Naruto hadn't spoken throughout this whole exchange, and I was desperately curious. I wanted to know what went on through his head when he found out I was an Uchiha, but could I risk the venture? What if he started hating me?

Giving in, I took a peek at him through the corner of my eye, but he was staring at nothing specific, with a blank look upon his face. He looked distant, and a little..._pained._

_Curiosity doesn't kill just cats, _I thought warily. I winced and fixed my eyes on something else, my mood rapidly decreasing. I wasn't sure if the hokage noticed what was going on, but if he did he didn't do anything about it.

"If you will excuse me," he said politely despite our age. He was always courteous. "I have some business to look after now. Be safe, Naruto, Souka."

The historic leader went towards the doorway, and he tipped his hat as a goodbye before leaving the office. I stood up and made my way to the open window. I shrugged on my backpack as the duty of going back to school flooded my mind.

I was halfway out the window when I remembered Naruto. I stopped and turned my head an inch to face him.

"Naruto, I'm sorry if I hurt you today, and I'm sorry about anything else you might be thinking of that maybe, has to do with who I am," I said, trying to be strong. He didn't acknowledge my apology and continued to stare bleakly at his 'something'.

I wiped at my eyes, but that didn't stop the oncoming current of tears. Did I just lose a friend? I knew this meeting was a bad idea. I just knew it. I was supposed to be cautious around Naruto; not hurt him further.

I sniffed, and resumed going out the window. The action seemed to take forever, and I couldn't help but tell him one last thing before I left.

"If it matters...I'm not like other Uchiha, Naruto. You were like my best friend, unlike any other; even if we've only met yesterday...it's been cool hanging with you."

And with that, I treaded carefully out the window, and crawled down the roof carefully to land safely on the ground. I didn't say any good-byes, because that would just be too painful.

(***)

Lagging along down the empty part of the street, I idly kicked the sole of my shoe against the cobble floor, holding my backpack behind me. Because of all the papers and a few books, the bag felt heavier than usual and a bit difficult to carry. But I wasn't sure if that was the reason why it felt like a ton. I let out a deep breath, and I could still taste the dumplings I'd consumed moments ago as my measly dinner. I had wanted to spend my money eating at Ichiraku's but it just didn't feel the same without Naruto there to create pointless conversation.

It was the dawn of the day when the sky turned from a deep, cerulean blue to a soft orange glow. I saw traces of pink lining the vast atmosphere, yet the color yellow seemed to be nowhere in sight. And the missing color reminded me of Naruto's hair.

I turned a corner a wearily, and almost bumped into a few kids running past me, chasing one another and screaming. Their laughter and shrieks of joy echoed down the alley before me and rang deafly in my ears. I scoffed in annoyance, and thought '_Shouldn't those kids be in bed or something?'_ But then again, Naruto and I were doing the very same thing two days ago.

Smacking my face with a free hand, I willed myself to stop thinking about my miseries. I hadn't seen Naruto all day. He didn't even bother to show up at my house during the free period from school to eat lunch and whatever. And I'd waited for him the entire time until I had to return back to the classroom.

So why did I keep thinking about him now, when he clearly disliked me?

_I don't need any friends. _I told myself. _Naruto was just a sign from the heavens to put me in the right direction. That's all he was. It was just short fun. All I needed to do now was focus, and follow the hokage's orders. I don't care about anything else…_

My eyes stung and I was momentarily blinded. Stumbling through the last few feet of the remaining alleyway, I reached my apartment complex and hiked up the stairs. I discovered my front door was unlocked, so I entered it easily and didn't even bother to lock it back up before heading to my bedroom.

I threw myself onto the large mattress, letting my eyes have a rest until I abandoned my bookbag on the floor. Studying sounded like such a pain, so I decided to take a scolding shower to knock some drive into me.

I started ruffling though the bottom drawer of my dresser to grab my sleep-ware, but then I gasped in horror, realizing what I'd forgot to do this morning that I was so used to doing every single day. In a flash, I reached out and yanked open the top drawer.

I let out a sigh of relief I didn't know I had contained. What did I think? That it was gonna disappear if I abandoned it? I grasped onto it gingerly, as if it could crumbled to dust any second if I treated it harshly. Photogenic memories of the boy in the black outfit flooded my vision, and unexpectedly, I found myself shedding tears. Why did I forget? What if I just decreased my chances of ever seeing him again?

Pressing two fingers forcefully onto my forehead, I tried to call off some of the throbbing headache. Basking in grief won't get me anywhere, I knew that by now. I had to be strong. I had to change. Was this what the hokage was trying to tell me? To let go of the past?

I grabbed onto the drawing and hugged it for a minute. How could I possibly let go of this?

"_Souka…"_

I jumped, completely startled at the voice. I looked frantically everywhere, but there was no human anywhere that the voice could have come from. I checked the drawing curiously. "Was that you talking? Or was that just me?"

"No, it's _me_," the voice spoke. I looked up to see Naruto stepping into my room. We locked eyes and my jaw dropped.

"Naruto?" I whispered. I stood up tentatively. "Why're you here?" I asked, and suddenly grew very cautious and wary of his reply.

He took a few steps closer so that we were just a feet away. His hands were hidden behind his back. He furrowed his brows. "Souka, are you still sad?"

My spine jumped at the unexpected question. "You-you know I'm sad?"

"Well, yeah. At least it seemed like it when you left the hokage's office this morning. _You_ made me sad when you said all that. It's like you don't want to be my friend anymore-"

"I wasn't trying to do _any _of that!" I admonished the rumour quickly. I felt so small and helpless, that I strained my voice to get my point across, so much that I began choking up. "I just thought you hated me! And you know why you would? Because I'm an _Uchiha_! Every Uchiha I knew acted like _jerks!_"

I dropped to the floor and started sobbing into my lap to block out his face. I didn't want to see his conflicting emotions. It would just pain me even more. The feelings inside my head were overwhelming, and it intoxicated my mind so venomously that it made me sensitive and prone to crying. I hiccupped several times under a few seconds, and the act of breathing became staggered and sharp.

"S-Souka, stop crying! Stop!" I felt his small hands grip my shoulders firmly, but he didn't shake me. He tried to hold me down and stop my quivering. "Why do you hate being an Uchiha so much?"

"Because-becau-err," I tried to explain through my gasps for breath, but it was extremely hard to do. I tried speeding up the pace, slurring the words thickly, "BecauseTheyHatedMeee-_gasp_-ForMe! –_gasp-_IHateBeingLikeThem!"

I thought screaming my feelings out was going to help and maybe release some of that anger, but it did the complete opposite. I fed the fire even more until it grew into a monster. Gasping faster than before, I felt like the air was being taken from me.

"Souka, look at me!" Naruto yelled forcefully. I did as I was told and he smacked me hard across the cheek, my face lashing to the right at the pure force of it. My gasping stopped and diminished to just hiccups and sniffles.

I smiled at the ground. The slap wasn't rude at all. "T-thanks," I croaked. "But that kinda hurt."

"Sorry-I mean. You're welcome-I mean, err…whatever! I didn't know how else to stop it," he admitted. "I've never had another person cry because of me before."

I shook my head. "Well, now I count as one," I corrected him quietly. "You're a good person Naruto, even if you mess around too much. I like being your friend. You give me something to wake up to every day."

His bottom lip shook slightly, but then he grinned. "Really?" he said. I nodded. "But why were you so down? I won't tell anyone, I promise!"

"Okay, I'm putting my trust into you. And you better not tell anyone that I'm an Uchiha. Not until I'm ready."

That's when I told him everything. I started at the beginning with me showing my dad the drawing I'd made, all the way to the shocking discovery of finding everyone I lived with to be dead. I paused many times because of the memories flooding back into my head, but I managed to force it out of me. If I was going to confide in Naruto for maybe the rest of my life, I had to tell him. He deserved to know. After all, he was there when the hokage and I conversed about my lack of self-control.

"My dad yelled a lot," I explained warily. "And he probably hated me, but he's dead now so he doesn't have to worry about me anymore." I blinked rapidly and patted my thighs to distract myself from the awful thoughts.

"You miss them, don't you?"

"Yes. You have no idea."

He looked up towards the ceiling, lost in his own world. "Souka, if it makes you feel better, I don't have any parents either. I don't even know what they look like."

I opened my mouth, and then I closed it.

"I'm sorry Naruto. And no, that made me feel even worse."

A silence enveloped the both of us. It wasn't awkward in the least. We were locked into our separate cubicles, reflecting on one another's sorrows and pasts. Naruto was all alone in this world. He had it worse than I had, yet he still managed. How did he even live this far by being an orphan? What did he look forward to when he woke up? What was his _goal?_

I examined his face curiously. He was staring at his 'nothing' again, so he didn't notice. Then suddenly, I began seeing Naruto in a whole new light, even if it was dusk right now. He was strong. Not physically, but maybe in spirit-wise. That day when I saw him running away from those angry men, laughing so hard; not one thought crossed my mind that perhaps he was an orphan. I thought he had it good. I thought he had a mom and dad to go home to. Because what orphan would be so happy, when they knew they were probably one of the loneliest people to ever walk the land? I admired Naruto. Maybe he could lend me some of that enlightenment, and spread it to every other orphan created daily.

My fingers made contact with a rough surface, and I checked to see it was my drawing besides me. I had drawn the Uchiha's symbol, because I was proud of it. I wanted to have a connection with my dad, but I was also proud of the respectful reputation it gave off to every hearing citizen. It was my bloodline. I _had _to appreciate it somehow; yet I was angered that it hated me in return because I wasn't good enough. I didn't live up to its standards, its name, or its expectations. And to add to that, it now represented the dead faces of my mother and father, and the nearly extinct clan of the Uchiha. Just like those animals I heard about in biology class, we were just like them; we were an _endangered species._

_But what if I could change that?_

I snapped my head up, wondering who offered the idea.

_You did, stupid._

I could save the clan? I touched my face, my shirt, my legs, my hair; me, a little girl, can save the clan? But…how?

_Just live. Don't die. Then the clan won't become extinct._

I clenched my hands. Yes, I've been doing the whole 'surviving' thing for months now. It was hard, but now with Naruto, it's become easier. Piece of cake-

_Wrong! You're still hung up about the clan, remember? Conquer your fear! Move. On. You won't get anywhere if you keep crying like some baby._

Slowly moving my hand to my head, I grasped the side of it firmly. I really had to go to the compounds, don't I? It was the only way to really see if I've gained any sense of self-control. But the smell of death was so strong that day. And it was so _bare._ It's a ghost town. What if I saw actual ghosts?

I shivered, thinking about the experience. I couldn't do that. I couldn't. Walking into that compound, would be like walking down memory lane. It would remind me of all the things I no longer can experience anymore, or have.

I didn't want to go there.

"Souka," Naruto spoke. He was still here, all this time while I was in my lucid thoughts. I looked up to let him know I was listening. Behind me, the window casted down its ray of moonlight. I saw my small form of a silhouette stretched twice my size before me, in the center of the dark bedroom floor.

He continued, speaking so intensely that I was astonished.

"I'll help you live. I promise. If you stay in my life, then I'll stay in yours. I won't go anywhere until we're ninja, and on the same team. We'll be tighter than the wooden chopsticks at Ichiraku's. You can believe it!"

I blinked my eyes happily at his touching words, but I clutched my stomach painfully. I could feel myself tearing up already. I laughed lightly, a hint of a sob lying behind it. "I promise! I won't be going anywhere either." I wiped my eyes dutifully and grimaced, a smile turned at the corners of my lips.

My heart swelled up, and I averted my attention towards my shadow distended on the floor. I reveled in the beautiful feelings of fullness again, until I knew I had to end it.

"Naruto, it's getting late. You should probably head home-"

"No, wait! I've got something for you before I came here." He shuffled over to the front of the door, picked a mysterious bundle up, and brought the item over for me to see. He jittered impatiently as I stared mindlessly. _Oh heck no. I know he didn't just…_

I discovered it was a maroon colored shirt when I started fingering it. He noticed the utmost curiosity displayed on my face, and held the shirt up, showing me the back of it. The shirt had large circular sleeves that dropped loosely, and it had the very familiar collar I was so used to seeing before I abandoned the compounds for good. And more importantly, it bore the _Uchiha symbol. _

I sputtered and choked on air in surprise. Naruto grinned widely at my reaction.

"Naruto-I-I, but how?" I exclaimed, fingering the Uchiha custom shirt he held firmly in his hands, like it was some prized possession.

"I went to the compounds!" He said with glee. I placed my hands on top of my mouth in shock and I could feel my eyes stinging again. _He really did go there._

"I felt bad about the old man putting you on the spotlight like that this morning, so I went and got it for you. I didn't want you to suffer through that; going to the compounds and all, 'cause you seemed pretty pissed when he told you to do it-"

I almost knocked him over as I wrapped him up in a bone-crushing hug so quickly that he yelled a little in protest. "I love you Naruto! I love you as a friend so much! You're amazing!" He flushed from my shower of affection. "But how in the world did you know where the Uchiha compounds were?"

He handed me the shirt. "Err, I kind of followed someone there when I saw him. I didn't even know he was going there until I looked up and noticed the Uchiha crest above me."

I folded up the shirt, but then I dropped it onto the ground once I heard the odd, new information. "Someone went in there?"

"Yeah, he's another Uchiha like you. I didn't even know you were in the same clan as him, Souka. You don't wear the crest or anything like he does! You don't even look like him one bit, well, except for the hair and the scrawniness, but still…Hey Souka? Are you even listening to me?"

I snapped out of the lost reveries and quickly scooped up my drawing. This day just got ten times better. I shook my head in pure ecstasy, dearly hoping I wasn't dreaming.

"There's a survivor," I told my drawing in disbelief. Then my dialogue got louder and louder. "I can't believe it! I'm not the only one! I'm not alone! We're…we're not endangered like those tigers!" I began weeping happily, shedding happy tears. Naruto beamed at my weird display.

"Please, tell me," I said, my voice wavering. "Was he wearing a black shirt? He's the same age as us, right? Right?!"

Naruto nodded at each question, his head bobbing so hard it moved his whole body. He grasped my shoulders and shook them. "Yes, yes, yes! And his name is Sasuke, Sasuke Uchiha!"

I shrieked with utter bliss, and together we started jumping up and down around the room yelling random things in victory. Once we stopped, I placed both the shirt and my drawing back into the top drawer. I whipped back at Naruto.

"Can we go see him now? Can we?" I didn't give him a chance to reply as I rushed to the window and threw it open. The sky was a fading orange. "Oh no, it's too late right now. But we can go first thing in the morning, right?"

"I-I guess so," Naruto said, astonished. "Wait, no. That won't work 'cause that's when my class starts. I only see him at recess during that free lunch period I have."

"Oh," I mumbled, disappointed I'd have to wait that long. But I guess I couldn't do anything about it. "Okay, so I'll see you where?"

"Just go back home right when the free period starts, and I'll come and take you to see him. I promise."

_Sasuke_, I thought, my mind wrapping itself around the boy's name. _I wonder what he's like._

I led Naruto out to the kitchen. We bid our goodbyes, and I locked the door behind him before rushing into my bedroom. I picked up the Uchiha shirt along with my drawing, and I placed them into the top drawer carefully. They sat nicely, taking up opposite sides of the drawer beautifully. Both of them showed off the Uchiha crest.

I started to wonder many things. How did Naruto even know that kid's name? And if I already have the shirt that I didn't even retrieve myself, could I truly face the hokage and say that I've done his task? Would Sasuke believe me if I told him I was an Uchiha just like he was?

I contemplated this hard. I looked down into the drawer. _Maybe I should bring the shirt and drawing with me? That's enough proof, right? I don't know…_

Shutting the drawer silently, I turned around to see my plump bookbag sprawled out against the side of my bed. I sighed warily, remembering all the homework and studying I had to do. _Maybe I'd better save the thoughts for tomorrow._

_Yes, _I thought. _Tomorrow. _I grinned and grabbed my backpack. I unzipped it and pulled out its various contents to begin my two hours' worth of studying.

_Tomorrow, I'll finally see him._

(***)

"Souka!" Naruto shouted loudly. He banged the front door mercifully, and ultimately knocked the grogginess out of my system. I shot up to go and let him in. Surely with his unnecessary noise there was bound to be some complaints from the neighbors.

I jerked open the door and grounded out, "Stop it."

His arm was frozen mid-air, aimed to commit yet another annoying knock, but he obeyed my hidden message and let it fall to his side.

I yawned deeply and stretched. "Morning Naruto…wait." I backtracked. "Hey! Aren't you supposed to get me during the _afternoon _and not in the_ morning_? Well, it's morning though, right?"

"Yeah, but I wake up really early. I already went to Ichiraku's and I got bored so I came here. I didn't know you'd still be asleep so, sorry about that!" He chuckled and cocked his head.

I glared at him nervously. "Um, what time is it?"

"About half an hour 'til school starts. Why?"

I wanted so much as to scream in horror at my lateness, but I swallowed it. Half an hour wasn't that bad. I gestured for him to sit at the table. "Wait here, I'll be out as fast as I can. Then we can go, alright?"

He confirmed his understanding with a firm nod and I went to go attend to my hygiene in the bathroom. As I brushed my teeth, I noticed I haven't even shower last night. I glared at my reflection on the bathroom mirror. _Ah, who cares. I can't waste any time._

Once I was done, I pursued to change into a peachy-looking shirt and a pair of bright shorts. Naruto came bounding into the room right when I was done.

"Hey, I was changing!" I scolded him. "And I told you to stay out there. You're lucky you didn't see anything."

"Psh, whatever. You were taking a long time."

I gave him a look and began sorting my worksheets and textbooks littered over my bed. I filed them carefully into my backpack. I must've fallen asleep when I was working last night.

"Hey, what's this?" Naruto asked. I turned around to see him clutching my drawing and staring at it intently like he was trying to decipher some code. I cried out, and quickly grabbed it out of his hands.

"Naruto, don't touch this! It's mine!"

"Why can't I touch it? What is it?" He prodded.

"It's a drawing I made a long time ago. And you just can't, okay? It's like a _vase, _Naruto. It could break real easily."

"But the drawing's made of paper. And paper only rips, not breaks-"

I groaned. "You know what I mean," I huffed. I looked at the messy, colored symbol, and immediately I felt a power surge within me, warming my chest. I placed it back into the drawer, and snatched up my backpack, beckoning Naruto with a wave of my hand.

I practically jittered with excitement. "Come on! Let's hurry up and get the morning over with!"

(***)

I rapped my fingers lightly on the top of the kitchen counter, caressing the shirt and tapping my sandals nervously. As soon as the teacher had released the class for its special one-hour break for lunch, I zipped straight home, and didn't even bother to go buy a dumpling or anything to feed my stomach. I just felt t_hat_ excited, but also _that_ uneasy.

Soon enough I hear a knock at the door. "Souka! I'm here! Why do you always lock the door? I don't!" Naruto's muffled voice yelled behind it.

_This was it, _I thought. _It's happening. _

I checked to see if my room key was present in my short's pocket, and if my drawing was in my other pocket before I proceeded to open up the door, walk out of it, and lock it behind me.

"Hi Naruto," I said, trying to feign any concern for the upcoming meeting.

He ignored me completely. Instead he said "Why're you locking the door?" because that was much more important.

I sighed. "I don't know, honestly. It's a habit. C-can we go now?" I pulled my hair slightly out of frustration at my stutter that would reveal my nervousness.

Luckily, Naruto didn't seem to have noticed and led us out of the complex. He walked down the road opposite to the direction we normally took to eat at Ichiraku's.

"This way leads to the academy, as well as my apartment too. Follow me." He directed.

We then started to meander through a maze of narrow passage-ways behind the houses of random citizens and buildings of sorts. At times, wooden fences bordered the way, and even brick walls of gray or red. This place was very unfamiliar.

I predicted that we were probably still far away from our destination, judging by Naruto's determined face. I tried to put some questions in; I put no thought into them whatsoever before speaking.

"How is Sasuke like?" I asked meekly, trying to keep up with his pace.

His face scrunched up with thought. "He doesn't talk much. He keeps to himself, but even with that act he still gets all the popularity. Sometimes I can't stand him."

"Uh...why can't you stand him?"

Naruto suddenly quickened his pace and focused on looking straight ahead. I had to run to keep up with him.

"Because," he said almost too quietly. There was a hint of anger in his voice. "He always beats me whenever we fight. And I hate it."

I nearly stumbled and lost my footing. _Sasuke fights?_

"What?" I shouted, panting heavily. "Why in the world would you guys do that in the first place? You two aren't even…in…the same…class," I faltered off, once I saw the building we've reached. Naruto jabbed his thumb at it.

"This is the academy!" He said.

Before us stood the largest school I'd ever seen. The giant academy extended for about a few miles, and it had two stories. Its roof was painted noble red with outlines of bright orange. There was a single sign above its doorway that read 'Ninja Academy', and a fenced in playground was located to the right in a vast dirt field besides the school. I could see several children playing, sitting down, or lounging on the play-sets. There was more to the field, but from where Naruto and I stood we couldn't see it. To put it, the citizen's school was just a simple, diminutive shack compared to the academy.

"This way," Naruto instructed, snapping me out of my amazement. I followed him into a dense forest and we hid behind many bushes along the way so that Naruto could survey the area. He didn't want to take any chances as we scouted out for Sasuke I noticed, and I thanked him for that.

We finally stopped at a spot near the slides and swings where it was shaded by the overhanging trees that grew from our side of the fence. I instantly realized what Naruto wanted us to do.

"You want us to _spy _on Sasuke by hanging up on top of the trees? Won't that be too much noise?" I knew what stealth was, and that wasn't at all being secretive.

"I know that!" He whined. "That's why we're gonna hide behind these bushes here, and wait until those girls get away from him. They usually will so trust me."

"What _girls_?" I said. I crawled my way into the bush and took a peek through an obtrusive branch. Sure enough, I saw a mini horde of squealing little children jumping in place and pointing repeatedly at their item of interest. It made me think there was a famous celebrity on the loose in the playground.

There were red targets set up in the distance I hadn't noticed before that was propped up by a few poles. About five boys were throwing what looked like diamond-shaped knives. The sharp weapons gleamed in the sunlight every time it shot across. All of the boys missed the target entirely except for one, and I discovered he was the center of attention.

The girls cheered, "You go, Sasuke! You're so great! Show them, Uchiha!"

I fidgeted uncomfortably, and I could sense Naruto doing the same behind me. I was mesmerized by Sasuke's feat. Each time he threw a knife, it would always end up embedded on the target unlike his neighboring pupils. One time he even scored a bulls-eye, but he didn't even acknowledge it. He just kept going with his head held high.

I took a moment to stare at my hands. _These fingers, _I thought. _They've never touched things like that, and Sasuke's already have. He's already a ninja._

My head whirled, and I could feel the bile threatening to escape my throat. _How is he already so good at this? Just how? _

Then I saw him stop and he turned his head to his fan girls. I expected him to bow, smile, show-off some more, or maybe even go running off into them and start cheering unanimously. But he didn't do those things.

Instead, he was passive and stoic. His face remained neutral and uncaring. In fact, he even looked a little _annoyed. _

Sasuke was such an _Uchiha._ The ideal Uchiha that my parents had wanted.

And I was _nothing _like him.

I could see it now. I could see the scenario that would play once I would walk up to him. He'd question my identity, laugh at it, and shoo me somewhere else because he was better than me. Everyone here was. That's why my dad put me off in another school, right? Because I was disappointment! I was a disgrace!

I wanted to scream. I wanted to hit the fence so hard that a crater would be left in its wake. My teeth clenched and I seethed with anger and jealousy.

I thought angrily, _Why was the bar set so high? Why couldn't I reach it, and make anyone proud? Why? _

The longer I stared at Sasuke, trying to figure him out, the more I felt irritated. He was supposed to make me feel better, not worse! What happened to that moment we had, back in the hospital? Where did that sensation go? That hope and the sense of belonging I'd finally felt after I'd met him…

I clawed at the dirt ground as my arms shook with the pressure I was forcing onto them. All of those reflections I'd made over the last couple of months. All of those hopeful prayers gone to waste. The boy in the black outfit hadn't turned out to be the person I thought him to be, so who was to blame here? Me or him?

_You suck, _I told myself. _You're inferior. You're not an Uchiha at all. You don't even deserve the name. You're not even strong. You just grovel at people's feet-_

"Shut up!" I cried. I gasped and I fell back to land on my behind. I snapped my head up to see if anyone heard me, but nothing was out of place; except Sasuke was now brooding in a corner, by the swings.

_I have to catch up, and fast, _I pledged, glaring fiercely at his head. _I'll show him. I'll show the girls. I'll show _everyone _at graduation day that I'm an Uchiha. I'll be head to head with Sasuke, and until then, there won't be no way he'll see me as a disgrace. This time, I'm going to try. It's no more fun and games._

_I'm going to become a ninja, and no one can stop me!_

I backed up out of the bush, and rose to my feet. I needed to see the hokage. I was ready, because not even the grievous thought of my dead parents could hinder my determined promise anymore. I'll show the hokage my proof, and get my tutor and information in return.

Before I left though, I heard a monotone voice speak up, and the words were very clear; I couldn't have missed them.

"Came here to get another beat-down, idiot?"

Another voice replied, "Shut up! This time, it'll be different. You're going down, Uchiha!"

_Naruto, _I thought. _You said that Sasuke always beats you in your fights. I wish I could help…_

I didn't dare to look back at their now ensued brawl, even if I heard Naruto's shouts of pain. Or maybe that was his battle cry.

"I'm sorry, Naruto," I whispered as I made my way out the academy grounds. The hokage's office loomed overhead, behind the horizon, as I ran towards it.

_I'll protect you one day. Just you wait. _

(***0***)

,

_At that time, I transformed greatly with that new knowledge in my mind. My hero was not who I thought he was. He became my enemy, my assailant, my worst inner foe._

_Four years had sounded like an eternity. I thought I would never graduate in time and become the great shinobi every other child was. I had so much to learn, but reflecting back on it, the years had flown by pretty quickly. Perhaps _too _quickly. _

_However…they were worth it though…_

_,_

(***0***)

It's been a week since my encounter with Sasuke. And I would know because I have a calendar now, thanks to Naruto. I've decided to mark down the days until graduation even if it's years away. It gave me something to do every morning instead of looking at the drawing constantly like I'd used to.

Speaking of Uchiha crests, I did manage to convince the hokage that I'd overcome my fear. He'd told me the determination was apparent on my face when I'd shown up in his office that day with the shirt in hand. I don't think I've ever wanted to learn as much as I do now ever since a long time ago, during those happy five-year-old days.

I was taking a test over all of the regular school subjects: math, reading, language, and history. My nagging tutor insisted we do this first so I could leave behind the citizen's school for good. It was almost like saying goodbye. Once I passed the test, I would officially start learning to be a shinobi, which began with the sciences.

I read and jotted down my answers as soon as I met the question eye to text. I was at the language section of the small exam, and it was surprisingly easy. The studying paid off after all.

_Take that, dad. I'm going to end your punishment once and for all._

(***0***)

It had been a full month since the encounter with that mean Uchiha boy named Sasuke.

"Naruto, what time is it?" I said. "My tutor's coming over at six."

"You need to go buy a clock-"

"Just tell me the time!"

He rolled his eyes distastefully. "Err, you've still got about half an hour. Can we go prank someone then? Please!" He whined, leaning on my other chair. He went a bit too far back and ended up on the floor with a thud. I laughed at his misfortune.

"But we've done that all day!" I replied. He tried to ignore his humiliation as he got up and placed the chair back on its feet.

"So?" He retorted. "It's a weekend! We're supposed to have fun."

"So? We already do that after school every single day."

Naruto droned, "_Soo_?"

I mocked him back. "_Soo?"_

_"So?"_

_"So?"_

Our dumb argument went on for the rest of the half-hour.

(***0***)

It's been three months since that _fateful _day.

"Come on! Pick up the pace, Uchiha! We haven't got all day now!" My tutor barked in my ear as she matched me at my maximum speed. My locks of hair stuck to my ears and the back of my neck, and my cow-lick wilted pitifully down into the front of my face as the forest scenery bounced up and down with my sprinting. I let out a gruff cry as I presented my tutor with a burst of energy, surpassing her tempo, but she quickly caught up.

"You've got to practice more, my student!" She said joyously. I panted heavily. Droplets of sweat collected into my brows, and some even managed to get themselves into my eye.

I blinked rapidly to try to force them out but it just blinded my vision further. I tripped over an unsuspecting branch and fell flat onto my face.

"Souka! Get up!"

(***0***)

It's been five months total since that meeting, and I was pleased. However, I didn't exactly feel the same way about the weather.

It was December, and it was freezing, but the temperature didn't stop me from frolicking outside though. Snow flurries by the thousands descended down from the wispy, gray skies as I twirled and spun around in place in the middle of the street. I didn't care about the weird glances sent my way. The villagers could hate all they want; they were probably just mad that Naruto and I could prank them so easily. The snow made me feel alive, and plus this day was a special one.

"Hey you," I heard Naruto's voice say from behind me, "I got you something."

"Huh?" I said, turning to face him. He was dressed in winter gear similar to mine: a jacket, cozy pants, and boots.

Thrusting a poorly wrapped box into my hands, he shouted, "Happy birthday, Souka!" And my face lifted in delight.

"You knew?" I said, grinning widely. He did the same.

"I go into your room all the time. It's hard not to notice your calendar full of '_X's_' and stuff."

"Oh," I muttered lamely, remembering the doodles of cake and candles covering the box 'December 14'.

We plopped down onto the ground, still at the center of the road. I made a move to rip the shiny, sparkly paper away but then I paused, remembering a certain phrase.

"Hey Naruto," I said. "…Thanks. It's been a while since I've said that. Thank you so much!-"

"Ahh, just open it already! Don't get all soft on me again. It's nothing."

I smiled and rolled my eyes, then I made a few swipes at the box, successfully ripping away the sticky tape and getting rid of the paper. I opened the box and dipped my hand into it to pull out something rectangular, stocky, and smooth. I stared at the single bell atop its head.

"You got me an _alarm clock_? I already bought one yesterday!"

"But you bought me the same thing for _my _birthday!"

"It was a _watch, _not a clock!"

"Whatever! Same thing!"

(***0***)

It's been about a year since the occasion, and I felt I was getting up there to the top of the ladder. The heavens were crying that morning, and the tears showered everywhere all over Konoha. The onslaught of rain didn't stop me from practicing though.

"Souka!" Naruto shouted, standing in front of the apartment complex and waving his hand in a frenzy as I treaded quietly towards him. I puckered my lips in contempt. I felt like a slimy frog that'd just surfaced from some muggy mire. I tried to ignore the disgusted looks sent my way.

Once I stopped two feet away from Naruto his jaw dropped open, clearly noticing my condition.

"You're covered in mud!" He said. I nodded sadly, picking at the brown, drenched fabric that was my 'white' shirt. "What did you do?"

My shoes squeaked as I shuffled, utterly embarrassed. I found a clump of dirt in the crook of my shoulder and flicked it off.

"I…slipped onto this huge mud puddle out in the forest."

He raised a brow. "Why were you in the forest?"

"I was running-"

"Why?" He exclaimed, throwing his hands in different directions.

I stammered, getting flustered, "I-I was building up this thing called 'stamina'-!"

"…Huh?"

He erupted into choruses of laughter, and he started to roll on the concrete walkway. My face heated up quickly, but in the end, I gave in and laughed along with him.

(***0***)

It's been a year and two days since I'd met Sasuke, and Naruto and I were halfway there to Ichiraku's. We were _starving _but Naruto looked pretty down. And come to think of it, he wore the same expression yesterday too.

"So uh, how was school? Another bad day?" I said.

He nodded slowly, and averted his attention elsewhere to try to hide his obvious anger.

I sighed. I shouldn't have asked that. And forget what I'd thought of earlier; it wasn't just yesterday, but every now and then he'd always come back from school like this. I wonder who it was that was making him act so weak. I instantly growled as a person came to mind.

"It's not _him_, is it?"

He snapped his head back towards me. "Huh? Who? Oh…no. Not him. I don't care what Sasuke does! He doesn't even talk."

"Well, then who is it?" I prodded. "I'll keep asking you if you won't tell me!"

Naruto hissed, "Hey, keep your voice down will you?" He began shuffling nervously and quickly hid behind a crate of oranges. His weird action made me tense, and I tried to pinpoint the cause. All I saw was roaming humans.

"What're you doing?" I muttered, getting next to him. _I guess I'll just play along._

"Hiding from _her_," he whispered, crouching on his knees and peering over the crate.

I gasped. "You _like _someone?"

"Shh!"

I covered my mouth to laugh, but then I recovered so that I could find this _girl _he was interested in. I followed his line of vision to come upon an…elderly lady.

A look of horror crossed my face, and I whipped my head back at Naruto. _He's blushing so it can't be her._

I tried a few more times before I finally came upon a girl about our height and age. She was at the stand across from us, examining a variety of trinkets and talking to a few other kids which I assumed to be her friends. What made her stand out though was her strange pink hair. She was like a radiant flower in the middle of a sea of weeds. I thought she was pretty.

"Is it that girl, Naruto? The one with that weird color hair?"

I pointed at her, but then Naruto shoved it back down, the red on his face spreading like wild fire.

"Sh-shut up! I don't like her!"

A giggle escaped from my throat. "Sure you don't," I said slyly. "Just don't come running to me when you get the cooties, okay?"

(***0***)

About two years' worth of assimilating the new information, working, and practicing, I was finally able to hold a kunai, according to my at-home teacher. I didn't know how to use it yet. I was just holding it. My tutor wanted me to get used to the feel first before I could begin throwing with them. After finally understanding the concept of the human body's complex system, and learning how to process the energy correctly, I was given the thumbs-up to move onto the next step in becoming a shinobi: learning to move like one.

My teacher led me out to a vast field that held nothing but dirt and blotches of grass, one of the training grounds near the apartment complex I'd never known about.

She stood in front of me. "Today, I will test your skills. I want to see how much you already know in the offense department."

"Offense department?" I echoed, "What?"

"Ugh, I keep forgetting you're just some kid," she complained. My brow twitched visibly, but I kept my ground. I was too curious as to what she was talking about to emit steam.

"I want you to punch me, kick, push, scratch; whatever it is you do to defend yourself," she commanded, "Come on, Souka. Come at me!"

"But I-I've never actually fought another person before-"

"Souka," she said menacingly, her tone becoming serious, "you're a _pathetic _Uchiha."

I flinched, and this time, I didn't even manage to keep my composure. I could feel my body tense up. "_What?_" I grounded out.

"You heard me. You're a pitiful excuse for an Uchiha!"

The words were like a barrage of shots, and they all hit their targets successfully, ripping my nerves up. I could feel my forearms and knees shake with rage. "Just shut up!" I shouted.

I came at her, running across the field to spring up and hurl my feet forcefully against her side. She blocked it perfectly without even a glance, taking me by surprise, and she pushed me down onto the ground with a loud thud.

I moaned, spitting out specks of dirt. She spoke, "I have to say, I _am_ impressed by your improvement in speed. You were at least a few meters away from me, yet you crossed it in less than a minute; But! Your fighting skills could use some work. _A lot _of work."

"Then show me," I said disdainfully, getting up on my feet. "I'll practice here until sundown with you. We have all day. Make me _worth _it. Make me an opponent!"

"If that's what you want," she replied, smirking. Her hands were a swift blur as she performed several odd signs. One second later I heard a _poof! _, and suddenly I saw four females before me. I blinked rapidly, thinking it was some illusion, but it was all reality.

"What-what did you just do? _How _are there four of you?!"

"Relax," she sighed warily. "Every ninja does this. You're gonna learn it too. How come you didn't know? You think ninja just jump around and throw things?"

I crossed my arms and whipped my head the other way, refusing to look at her disbelief.

"You're so sheltered," she said with a laugh, and she proceeded to summon numerous logs with more hand signs. Every time she patted the ground, one would magically appear. I looked on with awe as her clones propped each one up on its trunk.

One of her came up to me, and I assumed it was the real one. "Come on," she said, offering me a hand. I took it. "We'll learn balance, accuracy, and the proper ways to release your strength without your chakra-"

"Chakra?"

She became exasperated once more. "Just go with it."

(***0***)

It's been two years and a half since that day. I was getting the hang of things, and I could feel myself getting stronger with every passing exercise.

At first, the training was horrible to go through. My legs would itch like crazy, and my arm sockets would be sore from all the rash activity. I took a few days off from time to time in order to properly recoup my energy back. This routine got tiring after a while, and one day, I got careless. I just found the resting extremely intolerable.

So somewhere in November I'd gone to the recluse training grounds beside my home, and tried to perform a few kicks in mid-air, like I'd tried to execute on my tutor earlier during our first fight. The pain would subside once I would spring up and twirl, but then my knee buckled after the fifth try.

I desperately tried to twist my body around, so that I wouldn't meet the ground with my face, but then that's how I managed to rip one of my muscles in my ankle. Luckily my tutor had shown up, and carried me to the nearest clinic; with a few choice admonishments though.

(***0***)

"Okay, am I being pranked or something?"

I was incredibly confused and lost, about three years later ever since that horrible day. My tutor was presenting me with a book that contained all sorts of hands forming different figures and symbols on each page. Every time she would flip a page, my mind would do a flip as well. Not just any flip, but a messed up backflip.

"Why are these signs called 'boar' and 'snake' and-and 'dragon'? They're called _human hands._ What are you showing me?"

My impatient tutor set down the book in front of me and demanded I look through it all.

"These are the hand signs needed to perform certain jutsu," she said slowly, treating me like a retarded child. "Remember that unit? I taught it to you a few weeks ago."

"Yeah," I muttered. "How could I ever forget that? You said we had like _two _blood systems going on in our bodies at the same time. Did you know how confused I was?"

She hummed, "Yes, but I don't care. It's called 'chakra', dear. Every human being has it. It's just that some special people know how to manipulate it. We call them _shinobi_, or in your terms, _ninjas_. The fact that we can use it is what sets us aside from everyone else. Weren't you listening to the lesson?"

I clenched my hands beneath the table where they weren't visible, and groaned incessantly at her infuriating remarks. _Maybe I was, maybe I wasn't. You were just being so hard to understand._

"Tch, you're so peculiar. Even your friend Namuno, what's his name, knows how to execute hand signs; although it could use a lot of work…but it's better than nothing! You're _behind_, Souka. Catch up-"

"That's it," I growled. I took the book's pages by the handful and flipped them to the right so that I was face to face with the front cover. What if this was witchcraft? I'll just learn it, and become an even better ninja than my dad. All he did was throw kunais! And to think that I thought that was all ninjas did…

"I'll take whatever you teachers throw at me! I'll understand it all, and we'll see who laughs at the end! Just watch!" I furiously read the title aloud and took in the pictures hungrily, along with their corresponding descriptions. When I flipped the third page, I could see the tutor smirk out the corner of my eye.

"Very well, Souka." She said, leaning against the kitchen wall smiling.

I relaxed my shoulders, and started to read a little slower, the anger evaporating into the air as I breathed calmly. I hid behind the upright textbook.

"I'm sorry," I mumbled, not really knowing why I said so. She didn't reply as I continued to read. I knew the anger was uncalled for, as well as the attitude, but I just blew. I didn't like feeling dumb, and useless, and retarded.

I just wanted to fit in.

(***0***)

,

_The four years were surprisingly beneficial, and I've gained lots of ground with it, what with the process of bearing the title of 'shinobi' brightly. _

_I remained scrawny and oh-so little, but I knew I could pack a punch. I was sure I was an equal of Naruto. I had learned that to send your opponent off flying, all you had to do was focus in on your chakra and lead it to whichever limb you're wanting to lash out. I also managed to learn a few jutsu, but it was only the basics and the requirements you had to know in order to graduate. _

_Unfortunately, that's all I've learned._

_But those years weren't just mainly about the laborious work, but the striving I've dedicated myself to do, and I was proud of that. _

,

(***0***)

..

.

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**A/N: Thank you everyone who's still following this story, as for my new followers :) I hope this chapter has been worth your wait! **

**If you haven't already read Chapter 2, I've explained that I will be posting about every two days or so on my profile page. It's like a bulletin board to let you keep up to date as to what I'm doing ^^ Chapter 1 has also been updated if you haven't read the A/N up at the top of the page.**

**Stay safe and Happy Roaming :)**


	4. Part 2: The Coping-Chapter 4

_CAUTION! What you're about to read is an OC Naruto fanfiction. If you do not respect this type of story then I suggest you stop reading and to please take your opinions elsewhere._

_This story is dedicated to those who like this kind of fanfiction._

_I do not own any of the Naruto characters or the world they inhabit. I only own the OC's and the story itself—whatever's not Masashi Kishimoto's._

**Asterisk symbols (***) indicate short/long time skips or scene changes.**

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_My Ninja RuleBook! _

_Rule#4- Friends always comes first._

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**PART 2: The Coping**

Chapter 4:

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...

..

.

The girl had oddly-toned skin color where on some places of her body lied tan patches, red spots, and hidden white porcelain skin. Her thin legs were distinct because of the huge shorts she wore. Her straight hip structure was there along with the flat chest, the narrow shoulders, and the dainty little fingers. All in all she looked like a malnourished citizen who's maybe seen better days. The poor girl seemed so bedraggled that I almost felt sorry for her, but her condition aggravated me, and her attitude was no better. I glared at the girl in front of me and she did the same, enlarging her tired, smokey black eyes at me. She was so sleep-deprived that it was a lighter shade of black than it normally would be.

_She's my pet. My responsibility._

As I turned to the side and she rotated as well, I discovered her black nest of hair was exceptionally long and naturally layered. I could tell from its texture that it could use some pampering, because what was with that strange piece of hair sticking up in the middle of her head, and the little strands that stuck out as if trying to uproot itself? Her hairstyle could have been described as a crisp and burnt upside down leaf for all I cared.

I sighed, exhaling a breath full of hot air and creating a smudge of moisture on the transparent wall between us. Between the girl and I. The wall divided us from our very parallel worlds and it was what kept me from stepping into that place to strangle the life out of her. And why would I do that? Because no matter how hard I tried all these years to keep her healthy, I've always failed. I've failed my own self.

_I hate mirrors, _I thought snidely, sticking out my tongue. And of course, she mimicked the action perfectly from the other side.

Tired of the fighting, I backed out of the corner I was in and turned to look out my bedroom window. The sun peeked over the horizon cautiously, like it was contemplating whether or not to rise. The streets below me were bare save for a few elderly men and women who were probably up to get that beneficial morning stroll, or to flip over that 'closed' sign behind the window in their shops. I continued to observe them, wishing I had their energy instead of my own.

A tremor ran up from the bottom of my spine and waves upon waves of fatigue lapped through my neck and torso. I mistakenly allowed my forehead to bump against the window and it startled some of the citizens walking past the apartment complex. I fled the scene before any of them could get the slightest idea of where it came from.

_Why am I up? _I thought, trying to rack my brain as I slumped into the side of the bed. _I shouldn't be giving old people mini heart attacks, or arguing with myself in the mirror. Miss Tutor's going to give me such an earful once she finds out I didn't get any sleep._

My mind wandered over to my tutor of about four years now. She'd told me to sleep as much as I could this week, but I had never heeded to that request. '_One more time if I catch you tired, you'll be hearing an earful from me, young lady!' _ She'd warned me. Usually her punishments weren't as bad because I always ended up not following her commands some way or another (the repetition was tiring for her), but something told me this week was different. She'd been so strict lately.

The tough woman had riled me up very well over the course of teaching and coaching. I've grown so used to her personality and her being around, that I even asked her many things like 'What was her history?' or 'What else did she like doing?' And more importantly out of every query, 'What was her name?' I didn't want to call her 'hey, you' or 'lady'; I wanted to give her a place in my heart alongside Naruto.

However, she'd refused every question, especially the one about her real name. I remember throwing a tantrum because she wouldn't divulge, but in the end I settled with calling her 'Miss Tutor'. The name stuck naturally, and I'd been saying the fake name for months. Even Naruto would call her that if he ever met up with her. Even the hokage called her that whenever she took me up to his office.

The tip of my foot made contact with something rough and the unknown object crackled as I applied pressure onto it. After twisting around, I discovered it was a scroll I'd left sprawled out on the floor. My eyes took in the rest of the surrounding area and apparently there were numerous other scrolls lying around my room too. I must have been studying last night.

I yawned and checked the alarm clock on my desk. It was about an hour before the time I'd usually wake up— which would be around eight—and Miss Tutor would be arriving at noon today to test me on some required jutsu. Should I sleep to stock up on that chakra, or just stay up?

I went along with the inane decision of staying up.

I reluctantly dropped to the floor and crawled in circles as I picked up each scroll to roll them back up individually and stuff them into the crook of my elbow. Later, I disposed the mini cylinders of parchment onto my bed and started to prepare for the oncoming, busy day ahead of me. As far as I could remember, every day was a training day so I needed as much daylight as possible. Graduation was coming fast so this week was incredibly crucial for me.

_Wait, the big day is tomorrow!_ I hurriedly reminded myself. I had to be ahead, and I had to study and practice. No time to waste.

I walked over to my dresser and grabbed a random bottom and top. After that I zipped into the bathroom to change.

A memory surfaced from when I was younger. I recall always stripping right there on the spot inside my bedroom to switch outfits, but for some reason it bothered me now. It was like I'd suddenly noticed there was a window in my bedroom, which was clear and transparent for any passerby to look up and see…

_Oh well, I probably didn't know any better. _

I snatched an elastic hair-band from off the sink's counter and roughly put my hair up in a messy ponytail like how Miss Tutor had taught me to. It was the only hairstyle I knew, and all I needed in order to survive in the heat.

_Tomorrow's test will determine if I'm ninja material. Once I pass it, I'll show that Sasuke boy. I might even finally see him again, and the confrontation will be different this time._

I could feel myself smirking as I strutted back into my room, feeling fresh and pumped in my old gym shorts and T-shirt. Numerous outings and experiences out on the clothesline made my crispy what it was today. The material felt great against my skin, and it provided me with a sense of accomplishment. It was like its condition represented my hard work throughout the lessons and the training I'd tried to complete. Just like myself, my shirt had been through it all with me.

With newfound spirit, I suddenly became excited. I flounced around the room, shooting my arms out right and left while skipping with jubilance. I was celebrating and I congratulated the days, months, and years I've survived, and I thanked and praised the times —because without time— I'd never have grown stronger.

I bounced over to the calendar on the wall that lied between my bed's nightstand and my short, bright pink desk. I grinned at the two specific rows of boxes that contained 'x's' in each individual cell. This calendar was officially the fourth one I'd been through, and there was never a date that I'd crossed out yet throughout the years. My streak remained unbroken.

I scanned my eyes over today's date. It read October 12. I wanted so much as to grab the nearest marker and scribble the boxes out, erasing the numbers and wiping away time just so I could get to the 13th a lot quicker. Today, October 12, sounded extremely long.

To speed time up a notch, I went ahead and began my session of practice for the day. I decided that my stomach could wait. It wasn't complaining yet so why not? I pushed the thought of breakfast aside and focused on the pile of scrolls atop my bed sheets.

I scavenged the mound until I found the scroll I was looking for. Each scroll was unique as they all held their own exclusive color of ribbon lying in the interior that trailed its way out to let a piece hang limply out the scroll's spiraling column. The one I picked up had a red ribbon, and the parchment was slightly thicker than the others. Its contents contained guidelines on how to perform the transformation jutsu—also known as Miss Tutor's test for today. I faintly recalled having trouble executing the specific jutsu. It probably explained why I was up so late last night.

_Thunk!_

I gasped and immediately dropped to the ground as a reflex once I'd heard the noise. Gently placing the scroll on the floor, I gradually stood up to investigate the disturbance. There was a noticeable, jagged crack on the outside of my window. It was like someone had carved mini lightning bolts upon it.

I quickly unlatched the window's frame and pushed the huge, glass out until its frame reached its limit and shook violently, halting to a stop. A gray object rocketed past my shoulder and I recoiled. It narrowly missed my neck. Luckily I'd opened the window before it shattered or I would've been in trouble with the feasible aftermath sharp pieces of glass.

"Hey! Souka! Over here!" A voice shouted from overhead. I leaned onto the palms of my hands and glared at the orange-clad figure standing on top of the building opposite from mine. What kind of greeting was this? And from Naruto too? I grumbled under my breath as I went back, snatched the rock from off the floor, and threw it out the window with all my might. The glittering object rocketed in a straight line to land precisely into his hand.

He only sent me his famous, pearly white smile.

"Souka!" He sang, apparently in a good mood this morning, "You're up!"

I smacked my forehead anxiously and I pointed accusingly at my cracked window. "See this?" I called out to him, "What the heck were you thinking?"

He continued to grin brightly as a response and I could hear his shadowy, sheepish laughter. He waved my complaint aside and strangely he announced, "Souka! You better step aside 'cause here I come!"

He began pacing backward atop the building he was on and started to sprint towards me, his yellow hair bouncing rapidly as he jogged at a high speed. Surprisingly, he jumped once he reached the edge and I realized his motive at the last second, ducking right before he flew through the window space and tumbled into the confines of my bedroom. Thankfully, he was unscathed as he stood up happily and pumped his fist, interjecting his 'awesome' jump.

I pictured a few terrifying scenes in my head as I helped him straighten out his clothes.

"Why didn't you just use the door?" I exclaimed softly like a harsh whisper. "Did you know what could have happened if the whole jump didn't work out?"

"Yeah, I would have just landed on the main road. No big deal."

I mocked him briefly before bending over to pick up the transformation scroll, and placed it safely onto the pink desk.

I turned back to face him. "Do you know what tomorrow is? Don't be so stupid and careless next time you try to call me up in the mornings."

"Stop worrying, sheesh!" He harrumphed, crossing his arms defiantly. Then, just like a flick of a switch, he switched over to another emotion, a roguish smirk plastered on his face as if an idea struck him. He went to stand beside the window. "I'll prove to you that I'd be a-okay even if I didn't land in your room. Watch me jump out this window."

I panicked once I'd heard that proposal and tried to grab him, but it was too late. He bounded over the window's ledge and I shouted out in fear as he disappeared. The apartment complex was at least two stories high and I'd never seen him attempt drops like that. This was probably his first time.

I collapsed onto the floor and cupped my face. I didn't know how to respond, but after a forceful push to stand on my knees, I chanced a daring glance down below. I anticipated the worst but I didn't see anything out of the ordinary, because there weren't any blood stains or any casted off limbs. I only saw the villagers casually filling up the road.

The door to my bedroom opened and I sighed in relief as Naruto strutted proudly towards me, his lips pushed upward in a pompous way. I remained hunched beneath the window's ledge and he squatted down in front of me. I could practically feel his happiness spread throughout the waning, tense atmosphere.

"See? I told you I'd survive," he exclaimed. "Why're you so scared? You've seen me do drops like that several times!"

"I-I have? No, Naruto. You've never jumped like that. Stop lying," I growled.

"I'm telling the truth!" He retorted. We glared at one another, the both of us refusing to give in and I was still angered about the broken window he'd caused. The last thing I needed this early in the morning was another accident.

I prepared myself for the incoming barrage of comebacks but he only sighed in defeat and dropped the irritated expression. I stopped the offensive stance almost too quickly and stared blankly at him.

"Nevermind," he muttered almost hurriedly, "You probably forgot about it anyways. Let's forget about what I said, okay?"

"Uh, sure."

My expression didn't waver, because I seriously did not have a clue as to what he was saying. Plus he wasn't even acting like himself. I gave him an uneasy shrug and gathered all of the scrolls together for the day, including the transformation scroll. I carried them outside towards the kitchen area and Naruto followed right behind me.

I arranged them neatly on the counter and made an attempt to lighten the mood with Naruto. "So, what brings you here this morning? I see you're wearing the new, orange outfit, but didn't you tell me it was for graduation day?"

"I wanted to wear it today," he grumbled, but then he quickly piped up, "Because today is the _day_!"

"The day for what?"

He locked his glinting eyes with mine and made a show of rubbing his hands together like he had the most evil plan yet. "It's the day I finally get noticed for my true power. I'll show everyone how I'm such an awesome ninja, and they won't even miss it because of my clothes! This will be the best prank yet, Souka, and I need your help!"

I pulled out a chair and sat on it to try to calm down my nerves. I was in a daze. How was I going to put this to him? I had to practice today and he had no idea how much I needed it.

He plopped down onto the opposite chair across from me and purposefully caused a ruckus just to get my attention. "Souka," he droned. "Answer me! Don't think! Talk!"

I ignored him and stared at the table to try to block him out. I began thinking. I had just blown him off seconds ago by claiming I've never seen him do ninja stuff, and he really looked like he was excited for this 'prank' of his. But what to choose? Which was more important: pranking or practicing?

Groaning, I settled with the usual, boring choice.

"I'm sorry Naruto, I can't. I have to go train," I explained, examining his shocked face. "My tutor's coming in to test me and I really need to work on this jutsu-"

Instantly, he exploded with a pent-up rage so furious that I almost fell out from my seat. "You're busy _again_?" He yelled, rising from his chair.

As Naruto continued to exclaim loudly an inexplicable fear reared its ugly head in the back of my throat. What had me on the edge was that there was absolutely no way he was joking. The usual happy-go-lucky tone he always had was missing in his voice.

"I can't believe you!" He said. "You've been acting like a jerk these past few weeks and I hate it. It's always 'Oh! I'm studying today, go somewhere else Naruto,' or 'I have to stay at home today; I'm working on this thing.' It's like you're treating me like some dumb, annoying kid who doesn't know what he's doing."

I shook my head furiously. "That's not true-"

"Is that why you don't remember me jumping from roof to roof? I showed you that stuff two days ago, Souka! You weren't watching me! You weren't even…paying attention, were you?! That's why you were scared just seconds ago!"

"I was doing my own thing two days ago! I didn't know you'd get all girly and sensitive like this if I happened to not pay attention!"

"Hey you take that back!"

"No!"

I saw a flash of hurt cross his face but it was only brief as he pushed his hands from off the table and made his way near the fridge besides the front door. He turned his head slightly to glare at me and opened his mouth ever so slowly, uttering cursed words.

"All you care about is Sasuke."

I gasped sharply, but managed to keep my mouth in a firm, closed line. _I don't even know how to respond to that._

He grasped onto the doorknob quietly, but before he turned it completely, he stopped. He didn't bother to look at my shriveled form but he stared down at the knob, contemplating his next move.

He said silently, "Did you know…I wanted to be a hokage?"

"You what?"

I smacked a hand to my mouth and hid underneath the crook of my elbows shamefully.

"Really, Souka?" Naruto whispered. "Wanna know when I told you that? Yesterday. I finally had the courage to tell you, but I guess you didn't care."

"B-but I do care!" I protested, raising my head up. "I have a lot going on, Naruto. Don't you understand? Graduation is _tomorrow _and do you know who'll be there? I've been waiting years for this chance and I don't want to blow it!"

Naruto shook his head sadly, refusing to make any eye contact. He turned towards the exit. "You're right. I don't understand. One month you're all fun and games, and the next you're all depressing. You don't even bother telling me why. What happened to that promise we made years ago? We're supposed to be in this together, no matter what, even if it has to deal with Sasuke."

Naruto inched the door open gradually and without even a goodbye, he left, closing the door behind him for me to mope around endlessly on the table.

I refused to feel guilty.

"You've never even asked me any questions about how I was doing," I mumbled disdainfully to the air, wishing it was Naruto. I growled, "You don't get it at all."

After a while, I reluctantly made my way to the counter to grab the scrolls I needed and a few wrinkled bills. Staying at home was beginning to bother me, and I didn't want to spend any more time eating breakfast here too. I speed-walked down the hallway and readied myself to jump out the open bedroom window. I could have exited through the front door, but that would just make me feel even more upset than I already was, knowing I'd be walking out the same way as him.

I placed a hand onto the window's tiny ledge and couldn't help but observe the flurry of cracks inflicted upon my window before I threw my body over and out into the outside world, landing upright onto the concrete sidewalk bordering the apartment complex. It was sheer luck that I managed to not land on any villagers by my lack of attention, because the only troubling thought I held onto now was how to fix a broken window, and a broken conscious.

(***)

I could feel the dumplings swirl in the depths of my stomach as I tried to call forth the chakra within me. The back of my neck began to warm up gradually and as did my other body parts. I'd waken up the sleeping, mystical aura and it rushed through my inner vessels, desperate to complete my commands so afterward they could slumber and recoup themselves in a single minute's peace.

_Do it now! Do the jutsu! _My mind screamed. I squeezed my eyes shut from the nauseous feeling. I was taking too long to release the chakra and it was getting annoyed, stirring my stomach's contents into an acidic whirlpool.

I called off the jutsu and fell backward onto the grassy plain. I held my head gingerly. I managed to keep the bile down and the warmness behind my neck dissipated along with my body temperature, returning back to their normal temperatures. I imagined the chakra within me to be swimming back to its rightful places around and under various internal structures like they'd always have after every jutsu.

Seconds later, the dizziness was lifted and I was fine. Fatigue crashed upon my bones, wearing me down and begging for me to sleep. I thought about my tutor's words. She did say something about not getting enough rest, and that it would cause exhaustion the very next day. It also meant the individual wouldn't have as much chakra as they normally would.

I scanned the empty and vast area around me, and allowed myself the pleasure of resting on the lush, carpet of grass. This was the perfect training area. Every time I would arrive here to practice, no single student would ever be in sight, and it made me wonder how the other students trained, but I did have to remind myself that they had actual classes in the ninja academy where more specialized teachers passed on the expert knowledge. There was no need to be out in the middle of a random training area. They had the academy grounds and equipment. Plus, the students in there probably knew much more than I did about the concepts of jutsu and were likely to control it well.

_I wonder if Sasuke's the top ninja in his class. All he did was throw a bunch of kunai that day. Big deal. But did that mean he was fittest student of all?_

Shaking my head, I pulled the transformation scroll in front of me. It was already open and standing by to let me study it. _No self-bashing, Souka, _I thought calmly. _And no more questions._

I left my chakra alone as I practiced weaving through the hand signs shown on the contents of the scroll. "Dog, Boar, Ram," I chanted aloud, reading off of the ancient parchment. Hundreds of powerful shinobi must have touched this same scroll too when they started off as lowly students. There were a great number of ninja around the village, and many in the textbooks Miss Tutor gave me. I muttered my thoughts aloud, voicing my opinion, "But why remember the signs? Why do I have to memorize the signs?"

"-Because you don't want to be holding a scroll while you're in the middle of a battle, Souka. I won't allow you to ask anymore despicable questions."

I knew who it was without even turning around. "Okay," I sighed, "that makes sense. I admit that was a pretty dumb question, but why stop asking? I like making you frustrated, Miss Tutor." I lifted my legs and swiveled around to see her humorless expression. She clicked her tongue in disapproval. Her mint-green lips scoffed.

"Watch your remarks, child, and you better because we're off to see the hokage."

"Fine, sorry," I mumbled. I switched my focus to the more important matter. "Why are we seeing the hokage?"

"He wants to see how you're doing. It's that time again, the check-up," she said nonchalantly. "After all, tomorrow is your generation's time to graduate. He'd like to see your progress."

She offered me her hand and pulled me up to my feet, my stiff bones popping audibly under the movement and Miss Tutor scrunched up her face, looking even more displeased than she was already.

"I can hear you're not doing well," she said, the remark laced with her signature, exasperated attitude. "What did I tell you about staying up until midnight? Didn't I warn you about the consequences of fatigue? You have to get rest or you won't get anywhere."

"But I did get some things done," I defended. "I was working on the transformation jutsu _and _I studied for the graduation tests."

She looked shocked. "Oh, is that so? Well…great…great."

She hurriedly snatched up the transformation scroll and rolled it back to its portable form, then she looked around for any more scrolls before turning her heel to exit the field. I spluttered and ran a few feet to try to catch up to her suddenly quick pace.

"H-hey! Miss Tutor, where are you going?"

"We haven't got time," she muttered out the corner of her mouth. "Hasten your pace."

She continued to speed walk, staring straight ahead like the professional woman she was while I struggled to keep up with her long strides. Soon we passed the iron, black arc that represented the only way into and out of the village from the plain field we were in.

"The hokage is waiting for us with the utmost patience, Souka. Believe it or not, he demanded to see you an hour ago but I couldn't find you anywhere."

I examined the shops and stands bustling with activity all around us as we weaved through the pedestrians. I was surprised to already see the hokage's office looming over the horizon.

I raised a brow. "But I'm always at the training grounds. I don't really go anywhere else."

"That's true, but you have been training a lot lately. I just thought you went off with that Naruto kid like you usually do whenever there's so much schoolwork being thrown in your schedule. Do you have like a sudden fetish for training now? Where's your friend?"

At the mention of Naruto, I was reminded of his tirade earlier that morning and I nearly ran over an infant just thinking about it. Was Miss Tutor actually telling me that training was less important? Something inside of me snapped and I bit back at her without thinking, "I'm perfectly fine, alright? Practicing is something I do now, more than anything. I don't have time for games."

She cackled lightly, completely unfazed and amused at my new pledge. "Really now? I don't recall you telling me that a few weeks ago. In fact, didn't you say you desired more 'free' time instead of 'study' time?"

"Uh…" I said unintelligibly. "Who knows?"

I tried to change the topic, "Oh hey, look; we're here. Let's go meet the hokage shall we? Okay? Yeah, great!" I made an attempt to flee straight into the boundaries of the hokage's office within its circular concrete border, but Miss Tutor roughly grabbed my right ear right away.

"Ah! Ow," I wailed. I clawed at her manicured nails that were latched onto my lobe to free myself but I failed miserably.

"Miss Tutor, can you let go please?"

"Not until you tell me what's going on."

"But I don't know what's going on," I muttered, wincing whenever she tugged forcefully on my appendage. I could feel the side of my face getting hot from the pressure. "I just like training…?"

She glared at me suspiciously and I averted my gaze to the citizens walking past us. _What a lie, _I thought mirthfully. _Training makes me sore every time. Why would I enjoy that? It's just that I don't know the cause of my behavior. _

_Well…could it be Sasuke after all? Maybe Naruto was right. I'm too hung up on trying to out-best that Uchiha._

I clamped my mouth shut and desperately tried to avoid Miss Tutor's piercing eyes that could make the most difficult of ruffians speak. She would just tease me if she happened to get a piece of my thoughts.

_I'm not sure if she even knows him._

"Know who, Souka?" She queried. I blinked and looked at her, the intimidating green eyes on her face practically narrowed.

_Did I just say that thought out loud? _

"Hah, um, no one! Nothing!" I immediately said, and looked at anything but her to not make any more mistakes I'd remorse over.

A man dressed in a threadbare green vest suddenly appeared beside us and nodded politely. It was the hokage's assistant who I saw ever so often by his side whenever I would rarely visit. Did Miss Tutor not know who he was? Because to my dismay, she was still clinging onto my ear as if it was the most normal thing ever despite the official-looking man in front of us. I tried to look as presentable to the hokage's assistant as possible.

Miss Tutor asked him, "Yes? What's your business?"

"The hokage wishes to see you two in his office," the lanky yet hardened man informed. "Please hurry, and also no horse-playing upon or near the official grounds would be necessary. That is the hokage's request. Thank-you."

And with that embarrassing remark left hanging in the air, he went back to be beside the hokage with a few swift, mind-boggling jumps across the roof tops.

An uncomfortable atmosphere arose from the ground beneath our feet and Miss Tutor finally released her hold on my ear. I sighed with relief, not daring to say anything. I risked a quick glance at Miss Tutor's expression. From past experiences, so far the only person she really listened to was the hokage, and he was also the only person who she bothered to ever seem proper in front of. She treated him with the utmost respect and she would instantly lose her pride if she was ever caught not following orders.

"Miss Tutor?" I whispered.

"I'm fine, child," she said, the determined expression returning. "Let's go. We can't make him wait much longer."

(***)

Walking a few paces back, I gave myself some room to breathe in order to start the jutsu. I straightened my vertebrae and created a tiny space in between my legs to gain a relaxing stance. I clasped the palms of my hands together, getting in the ready position, and I skimmed through the memorized text in my head one last time before letting out a steady breath. Finally, I let my shoulders sag freely and pretended I was at peace.

To control chakra, you had to be in tune with its natural presence and let it know you were in command. Oddly, Miss Tutor compared the idea with those religious monks that lived in the mountains. Monks tried to connect with nature, spiritual energy, or possibly even themselves; while I made efforts to try to befriend the chakra inside me.

So basically, according to Miss Tutor, I'm like a monk in training.

When Miss Tutor had first introduced the concept of chakra to me, I hadn't been able to wrap my logical mind around it for days. I considered myself a stubborn kid who only believed in certain things, and chakra was not one of them.

The first school I'd ever attended was Citizen's school so rarely did the teachers there mention anything about the traits and details about shinobi. In fact, they were never mentioned unless we were learning about Konoha's history. If you went to Citizen's school, then you learn how to be a citizen. It wasn't necessary to gain further knowledge about the nin so for the few short years I was there, teachers only taught about the human blood system; the essential life source of every being. It was totally new information at the time so I'd absorbed it like a dry sponge and held onto it firmly, making it the most important fact of surviving.

Blood was important.

But now that the chakra system came along, it had left me dumbfounded. Which was more important? I learned you needed both supplies of the life source in order to survive as a shinobi.

Both chakra _and _blood were important.

But now that I'm suddenly a ninja, I had to understand a variety of incredible and unrealistic subjects. The possibilities were endless, I'd discovered, so following the ninja path was amazing. It was like being a superhuman. Or a witch. However, it did have its disadvantages from time to time.

I could hear Miss Tutor fidget impatiently from where she was standing next to the calmer and reserved hokage. I pictured the old hokage sitting behind his office desk, his arms propped up thoughtfully while he puffed away into his pipe. He was probably observing me carefully with utmost precision and noted every flaw I happened to make. I imagined Miss Tutor to be doing the same, minus the pipe and sitting.

I took in a deep breath and wiped away any remaining traces of thought connected to reality. The once drowsing chakra awoke into frenzy when I roused them up gently. My stomach managed to digest most of my breakfast on the way here, so the nauseous sensation was nonexistent as the chakra rushed to the pit of my stomach and to my hands. I performed the hand signs as fast as I could while I held the chakra in place in their new positions. My palms trembled from the pressure.

_Dog, Boar, Ram-_

"Transformation Jutsu!" I shouted, a picture of Miss Tutor flashing across my vision. Immediately an invisible weight lifted itself from off my entangled hands and the chakra left from my body to create living magic besides me. A _poof_! resonated off the walls and I opened my eyes to see two Miss Tutors standing in the room. The real one smiled noticeably and the fake one had a comprehensive look etched onto its features.

"Well done, Souka," the hokage complimented. I just stood there, still in the executing position and admiring my work.

I remember my first few tries failing pitifully with the fake Miss Tutors slumped over (which I didn't mind seeing), but with practice the results became more accurate. However, this one standing next to me, was by far, the most perfect one yet.

I saw the hokage giving me a small smile and I backtracked to what he said earlier. "Oh, thank-you, Third Hokage," I said, bowing dramatically. I giggled with glee and shoved the fake Miss Tutor playfully, making her disappear into the air with another magical _poof! _sound. The real Miss Tutor rolled her eyes.

The hokage laughed lightly. "Is this the first ninjutsu you've learned, Souka?"

"Yep! I mean…yes sir," I said, smiling sheepishly at my audience. Miss Tutor shook her head sternly at me and I decided to cut the fun act for her sake. I continued, letting the hokage in on the details, "I started learning the signs for it about a month ago, and up until now I've been trying to get used to the chakra like Miss Tutor told me to."

"It's been a very difficult process for you, I presume?"

"Yes."

"That's to be expected," he said, nodding approvingly. "You were in the regular school for a decent amount of time but from what I hear and see currently, you are showing extraordinary and obvious improvements. It's like you've never even went to Citizen's School in the first place."

My face went hot from all the praise. It was such a new and uplifting feeling that I couldn't wait to make him satisfied again in the future. "Thanks hokage," I squeaked.

"You're welcome," he replied. After getting a whiff from his pipe, he started examining me closely and said, "Although you are quite the skinny girl, aren't you?"

"Sir?" _Is being skinny a bad thing? Is that going to hold me back?_

"Miss Tutor, let me see her papers please."

I watched nervously as Miss Tutor created a quick sign with her hands and summoned the manila folder that contained all of my personal information. Like me, she seemed just as apprehensive for the hokage's request. She plucked the folder from off the ground, handed it to the hokage, and we both stared at him as he scanned his eyes down my profile and statistics.

"Oh," he murmured, "I could have sworn you were under-weight. No offense Souka, but you look very malnourished. Are you eating daily?"

"W-well, whenever I have the chance too. I don't get hungry that much, to be honest-"

"Hokage," Miss Tutor said, butting in, "I believe it's because of her expansive clothing that she has on right now that's giving people the illusion that she's unhealthy. If you take a look at her stats and not her weight, you'll see she's at average with any other academy student. I've checked constantly to make sure she was up to par before graduation. Trust me, she's doing well."

My mouth gaped open at her quick save and I made a quick mental note to thank her later.

The hokage nodded thoughtfully after absorbing the information in. "I see." He flipped a page and his eyes widened.

He began a different topic, "I've never noticed this before, but Souka's had quite the number of injuries. Did you add this list in just recently?"

Miss Tutor grimaced. "Yes, but the purpose in that was to only sum it all up for you, hokage. I knew that today was her last check-up so I thought I'd include it to erase any doubts you would possibly have before graduation. I'd like to add that her muscles have expanded gradually over the years."

The hokage nodded once more and held a small, square photo up to his face. "The Souka from the age of eight and the one standing before me _do _have their drastic changes…I guess I can agree with your observations, Miss Tutor."

"That's great."

I allowed myself a sigh of relief as they both continued to talk about my progress. It was as if they were treating like a lab experiment; like I was some animal they were discussing about and they ignored my presence completely. I didn't care though. If I had to step into enormous water tanks and float inside, or take some enticing shots, then so be it. I just wanted to graduate.

I tuned back in to what they were saying in case I missed anything important.

"…yes. I've experienced her taijutsu firsthand, hokage. She may look discouraging now, but that's just looks. She really does have the energy, spirit, and inner-chakra direction to carry out kicks and punches."

"Okay, and her ninjutsu ability in your opinion?"

"Err, I can't say, hokage. Truthfully, taijutsu is her best bet as it requires little chakra. She takes too much time to execute jutsu as you've witnessed earlier."

"But she holds a sufficient chakra level within her. Will you let it go to waste?"

"My apologies but I'm not very knowledgeable in the field of ninjutsu, hokage. Perhaps a different instructor can help."

"That's understandable, but which to pick? Taijutsu or ninjutsu?"

There was a pregnant pause and Miss Tutor didn't bother to reply. Their eyes were on me, and apparently that question wasn't for her to answer.

"Wait, what?" I said, getting hot in the face again. "You want me to choose?"

The hokage nodded sternly. "And also a specific teacher for the field because seeing as you're an orphan, you decide. Usually it's the guardian's ruling on that but in this case, it's yours."

"I can't have Miss Tutor as my teacher instead?"

"I'm afraid not. Miss Tutor is not a qualified jounin. She is only a temporary tutor for students."

I frowned and Miss Tutor only shrugged in my direction. She couldn't do anything about that statement, but even if she were to be my teacher, what would I get from that? She just stated she wasn't very skilled in ninjutsu; However, I enjoyed doing those unbelievable things. I liked both ninjutsu _and_ taijutsu.

"Can I have…both subjects taught to me, third hokage?"

"Both?" He allowed himself a few seconds of thinking before he clasped his hands together. He added shortly, "I think that'll work. Miss Tutor, may I have a moment alone with Souka?"

"O-of course, hokage," she said hastily. She bowed deeply, turned to wave at me, and then exited out the office through the doorway.

I walked up a few paces towards his desk but I didn't dare to place my hands anywhere near his important-looking things as I looked at each item curiously. My eyes came upon an open folder with another shinobi's profile lying in it and I saw a petite woman with a heart-shaped face in the paper's profile picture. Her mint-green lips were formed in an unsure smile, and her dark-green, voluminous curly hair sat nicely on top of her shoulders, her puffy bangs forming a deep, concave wave on the side of her forehead.

It was indeed a very proper and accurate photo taken of…Miss Tutor.

I gasped in surprise, but then the hokage firmly closed the folder, concealing it away from my nosiness.

_I should've looked for her name. What a waste of a perfect opportunity. _

He cleared his throat to gain my attention. "I hope you'll pass the graduation test with flying colors, Souka. It's expected that you do."

"Why?"

He sighed. "I have a specific team for you in mind that matches with a few other shinobi students' characteristics and desires, and also a jounin with the right requirements and responsibility.

"The team-placement system works like this: each student on the day of testing will be required to complete two written exams and one correct presentation of the Cloning Jutsu to at least one instructor. Once that is completed, I and the other officials will examine your performance on each subject. How well you do, and how your statistics range, will determine your future team members."

"Why is so much being thought of? You can't just create teams randomly?"

"No, everything is taken into consideration in order for each student to gain the most out of their experiences during missions. Remember, the purpose of having a variety of teams in the first place is to help you target and improve the cracks in your ninja stature and abilities."

He hesitated, as if catching himself doing the wrong thing. "Has Miss Tutor not had this discussion with you?"

I blinked and couldn't come up with an answer. _Oh shoot. It's either I wasn't paying attention to Miss Tutor—which is unlikely with her persona—or she really didn't tell me. I don't want to get her in trouble. Maybe I can pretend just this once…_

"I forgot!" I piped up dumbly. The hokage began rubbing his face warily.

_Okay, great. He thinks I'm having a lapse._

"Again, I dearly hope you pass the tests, Souka. I've meticulously planned a team for you while examining other students' current grades. If you do exceptionally well on the exam, everything will go well, and you will receive your answers in life in no time, understand?"

I saluted him and stomped one foot. "Yes sir! I will not let you down!"

"Good…good."

He rose up from his chair and turned his back so he could face out his expansive window. He had a single arm folded behind his back, and the other arm he used to support his pipe. I poked my chin pensively.

"Wait, hokage, so when will the teams be picked? When's orientation?"

He turned his head a short way. "It's two days after your graduation test: October the 15th. Teams will be picked in each classroom. I will tell you further details after you graduate, and take your ninja registration photo.

"Now come stand beside me for a second."

I did as I was told, and together we both stared out at the huge village before us. It made me notice how much of the village I've actually haven't experienced yet. There was architecture everywhere in the warmest of colors you could imagine. Somehow, the tranquil picture seemed smaller than the last time I'd seen it from this point of view.

"Do you love this village, Souka? And what it has to offer?"

I looked up at him in confusion. I didn't expect that sort of question.

"I live here, hokage. I don't see why I shouldn't like it…although the villagers here are kind of mean."

"Why do you say that?"

"They always give Naruto and I these nasty looks whenever we walk through town. I think they have anger issues."

The hokage shook his head momentarily and murmured, "Well that's because you and Naruto bother them so much with your commotion. Don't think you get away with your pranks, Souka. I can see many things."

I watched the busy streets reflectively. _I've never thought about the villager's feelings whenever I'd get on their bad sides purposely. The old man has a point._

"But they ask for it, hokage," I concluded after a while. "It's what they get for being so rude to Naruto all the time. If you saw how I met Naruto, then you'd understand. There are times when Naruto doesn't bother them and they call him these mean names for no reason-"

"Okay, I think we should call this the end of our meeting," he said, chuckling. "And don't you worry about Naruto, Souka. He's got you to lean on, right? He will make it out safe and sound."

I sighed deeply, blowing the hair out of my face. The hokage had no idea what I'd done to Naruto this whole month though. I glanced out the window and wondered if I should try to search for that yellow-haired boy.

I watched as the hokage sat down in his seat before making any moves of departure. "I'm going out the window, okay hokage?"

"That's fine with me. Just close it when you're out."

I smiled faintly behind his back. Who knew the third hokage was such an easygoing, and humane leader? And to think I used to block him out when I was younger when he was only trying to help me. He helped me survive, he gave me guidance, he checked up on me and Naruto whenever he had the chance, he loaned me three years' worth of money…I even caught him paying his respects to my buried parents alongside a whole yard full of deceased Uchiha clansmen. I shook my head and walked towards the end of his window.

"Hokage," I said softly. "Thank you for everything."

He turned his head away from his busy work and listened curiously. I noticed this was the first time I'd ever thank him for something, and he looked so shocked.

"…You have indeed changed, Uchiha, Souka, because here you are thanking me."

I laughed at his little joke and ran up to him to encircle his torso into a tight hug making a few of his papers go floating down near his feet. He looked so stunned at my actions that I nearly went insane with laughter and mirth. "I love you, hokage!"

(***)

I shut the hokage's window back in place with a click, and jumped down from his roof. I searched for Miss Tutor, but couldn't see her anywhere, so I decided I'd try to find her later.

I roamed my eyes over the hokage's roof. I could remember the time when I refused to even stand up on top of a roof like that. It was almost as if it were yesterday.

_When I was eight, Naruto would pick me up and place me upon this very roof so we could get the hokage's attention about placing me in the academy. I was so scared to even think of looking down, and in the end Naruto would just help me back down again in the same way he got me back up._

I suddenly realized something and gasped, covering my mouth several times with my hand. So Naruto _did _know how to jump from roof to roof after all! I groaned and smacked myself on the side of the head. How could I have not remembered that when I was criticizing Naruto this morning? Was I at fault for _two _things at the time? I'd been ignoring him _and _I accused him of the wrong things?

I hovering near the hokage's concrete building and placed my forehead against the rough surface. The more I thought about our argument, picking out the mistakes I'd foolishly made, the more I found myself a bad friend:

_"No, Naruto. You've never jumped like that. Stop lying."_

_"I'm telling the truth!" _

I whined profusely under my breath, talking to myself, "He was telling the truth."

_"Nevermind. You probably forgot about it anyways. Let's forget about what I said, okay?" _

_"Uh, sure."_

I pounded my fist against the wall. "And you even forgave me."

"Hey, are you okay?" A masculine voice said besides me. I jumped and heat immediately crept up my face. He instantly took a step back once he realized who I was.

"You're that girl who hangs out with that Naruto kid!"

"Y-yeah, so?" _Why do I sound so weak? He's lucky he caught me in an embarrassing situation._

"Why you little-" He raised his fist to hit me, but right when it was about to land right smack on my jaw I shrunk back and quickly leapt up onto the hokage's roof. I peered over the edge to see him looking angrily up at me.

_Geez, that was close. Stupid villager._

I watched curiously as he made a jerking move on his sleeve and slowly walked away, still giving me dirty looks every once in a while. Once he was out of sight, I stood up and straightened out my clothing.

_I have to go find Naruto._

I braced myself against the steep tiles, preparing to launch off onto the ground, but then I heard a faint commotion. It seemed to be coming from behind me.

"This is stupid, Iruka-sensei!"

Pushing my back against the wall near the hokage's large window, I inched around the circular exterior of his office until I gained a glimpse of half of the hokage monument. Seeing it from here was huge and I almost lost my grip on the walls by the sheer amazement of it. I chanced a look down and saw a few lively green tree tops.

The hokage monument consisted of four individual's faces carved into a long chain of mountains. History class told me that the faces represented Konoha's ancient history of hokages, and it took hundreds of men to carefully chisel just one figure.

It'd been a while since I've bothered to observe the monument's beauty, so it took me a few seconds to even notice the offending marks drawn upon each leader's chiseled face. Then I picked up on two more, minute figures on the monument: one orange-clad person and another one of those green-vested men.

_Naruto! _My head yelled joyfully. _But what's he doing here? Why is he wiping that monument's face?_

I heard a voice come floating down to my ears, a man's stern tone echoing off the mountain, "I won't let you go home unless you clean that all up."

_Oh, figures, _I sighed, shaking my head in friendly disapproval. _Of course Naruto made this mess. Was this the prank he wanted me to help him out with? Maybe I should go up there and help him-_

Naruto shouted, "So? I don't care. I can do this all day. There's no one at home anyway!"

Fear clouded up my mind. I forgot for a second that he was still mad at me. I breathed in slowly as I slid one foot left, and the other foot the same direction. I should apologize before anything else happens-

"But Naruto, you told me just a few months ago that you had a best friend."

"Well, maybe I lied! She's not my friend anymore. She's just like everyone else."

…His words boomed inside of my head as I stared mindlessly at Naruto.

_'She's not my friend anymore.'_

_'She's just like-_

_-everyone-_

_-else.'_

I bit my lip and the heart in my chest pounded frantically like it was panicking. I didn't want to make my presence known. I shuffled back quickly towards the front of the hokage building and jumped clumsily off the roof, my palms and knees gaining most of the impact once I reached the ground. I scrambled onto my feet and fled out the hokage's perimeters to head straight towards my apartment.

Everyone's eyes were on me as I weaved past them, their eyes tightened with the cruelest of contempt and staring straight in to my ruthless soul. It's like they knew what I did to Naruto and how guilty I was. I wanted to get home and lock myself in my room, and put a huge gap between me and reality. I wanted to flee from my problems like how I would run every time my parents and I argued. I hated the irony, and the hypocrisy of it all. I loathed the people who treated Naruto poorly, but in the end I found I was no better.

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**A/N:**** Don't worry! Expect two more chapters coming right up perhaps sometime Saturday/Sunday :) . I've just broken the huge update up into three chapters.**

**It's been nearly two months since I've last updated, but I do have an excuse. And it's the usual: school stuff and life-wise! The month of May is the most hectic for anyone who attends school, so it's almost as if I've taken a whole month off of PbtR. I hope to get back on track soon.**

**I would like to thank all of the new participators who are following this story and I thank every reviewer! Every single alert gives me a fluffy feeling inside :3 I'd also like to give a shout-out to marmaroth for that loving PM reviewing this story, and also to the community additions. I'd also like to thank Bree Avalon for her continuing support and her weekly friendly chats! Hope you're doing well, girl!**

**As for the reviews, I will elaborate on that in the next A/N, which is at the bottom of Ch.5. I'll also mention more misc. details such as why the genre of this story changed from 'Romance' to 'Mystery'. The concept will fit nicely along with my explanation for the reviews.**

**,,**

**Lastly (I'll be asking questions every chapter from now on to set up the mood for upcoming chapters, etc): _What do you think of Miss Tutor? Important character or no? Does she have something to hide?_****-Please let me know in your review if you are reviewing! :) It really helps me out a lot! I love seeing how you guys think.**

**Happy Roaming! –Yuki ^^**


	5. -Chapter 5

_CAUTION! What you're about to read is an OC Naruto fanfiction. If you do not respect this type of story then I suggest you stop reading and to please take your opinions elsewhere._

_This story is dedicated to those who like this kind of fanfiction._

_Whatever's not Masashi Kishimoto's, I own it. I'm just borrowing his wonderful stuff._

**Asterisk symbols (***) indicate short/long time skips or scene changes.**

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_My Ninja RuleBook! _

_Rule#5- Think about Rule#4 once more._

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Chapter 5:

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The clock _ticked_ and _tocked_ and I listened to its mesmerizing sound. I had my arms crossed on the desk beneath me, my chin resting upon my bare, cold skin. I was sitting at the very back of a vacant classroom somewhere inside the academy, waiting for Miss Tutor to come back from where she was dropping off my two final exams. The jutsu presentation was next and I felt anything but pumped. I just wanted to get it over with.

I lazily scanned my eyes across the odd classroom before me. Usually I pictured classrooms to be just flat with no stairs at all with their own individual student desks, but the ones at the academy were different. Their classrooms had the teacher's desk sitting at the front of the classroom while three rows of brown, long tables at least three feet away from it revolved around the specific desk. It was like a mini stadium or auditorium with the familiar height differences in the seating formations and corresponding stairs. The construction of the classroom seemed very creative, and the teachers here must've had a nice view of their class from down there.

I glanced at the boring, circular clock right above the teacher's hefty desk. It was barely past late afternoon. I turned my head slothfully towards the wooden door. No Miss Tutor.

Huffing out in annoyance, I stuck my entire head underneath my arms and tried to get a few minutes of shut-eye. I hadn't been able to get any sleep at all last night. I skipped showering, dinner, and changing as well. I didn't manage to get anything accomplished. Not even studying.

Minutes later, the door whined softly as it opened and I slowly lifted my head up to make eye contact with Miss Tutor. She winked and beckoned me to follow with the wag of her painted finger. I noted her mood spitefully. _Someone's happy today._

It took me forever to get up from my chair. Heavy step after heavy step, I went down the stairs like an ignorant bum. I finally reached the door and together, Miss Tutor and I began our quiet trip down the hallway towards the next room. Our paces clashed; her long, fast strides out besting my lagging, jerky ones.

"Souka, do you want me to carry you like the irritable baby you are?"

"Sure," I muttered, her remark sapping away the last bit of any politeness I had. _It's not like there are any other students are here to be embarrassed from. We took the back way in while the rest of them were…who-knows-where._

"Miss Tutor, where are the academy kids?" I mumbled.

"Still testing in their classrooms with their teacher. That's why the academy's still so quiet. In every class there are always those one or two kids that take forever to complete a measly written exam."

"Oh."

_I bet Naruto's one of them. _

I didn't know it was possible, but my shoulders sagged even lower than they were previously.

"Will you please act your age?"

"What, you want me to go bouncing off the walls and do pranks around the village? Well, guess what? I don't want to."

_Wow, I think I just described Naruto. What's wrong with me?_

She looked back at me sternly as we turned a corner. "That's…not how most twelve-year-olds act these days. Are you feeling okay, child? I know this test might be nerve-wrecking and of the sort but the last thing I ever suspected was for you to act so anxious. Are you _that_ nervous about the presentation?"

"I'm not nervous, or anxious," I grumbled, crossing my arms on my chest.

"Then what's the matter?"

"I don't wanna talk about it."

Soon, Miss Tutor slowed down to a stop besides a closed, dark wooden door with a transparent slit of glass going down the center of it, but only halfway. I could hear bits and pieces of a conversation going on from behind the door.

I took my spot on the opposite end of the door where I was away from Miss Tutor. Her presence irked me and I fidgeted uncomfortably. I knocked my head lightly against the wall.

"_Souka," _she hissed rather inaudibly. I pretended I didn't hear her and continued on with my rhythmic knocking. I expected her to lose her temper and perhaps hit me but shockingly, she merely sighed. I stopped and glanced at her. She was giving me an extremely unnatural and sympathetic grimace.

I whispered quickly, "W-why do you look like that?"

She changed her expression, crossed her arms, and leaned against the wall almost too casually. She whispered back smugly, referring to a whole other topic, "It's because we're in the academy, isn't it? Are we too close to the other Uchiha boy for your liking?"

I sputtered, immediately losing my relaxed composure. "What? No! I just want to get this dumb test over with!" Her mouth hung open, completely frazzled, and I averted my scowl to the floor. The door cracked open between us and a man's head popped out, the hokage's assistant. He immediately frowned once he realized who we were and sighed irritably.

"Fortunately for you two, the presentation ended right before your disturbance." His eyes landed on Miss Tutor. "Are you and the student next in line?"

She was too busy trying to hide her face (probably thinking about the hokage), so I nodded in confirmation for her.

"Great," he said. "Please wait here."

The man left the door revealing a brightly lit room. There wasn't any stairs or long, brown tables; it was just been a regular, flat-floored room with none of those altitude variations.

A woman came into view from inside the room, and she stepped out into the hallway besides us. A girl maybe my age followed suit.

The girl considered us curiously, her gaze resting much longer on me than it should have, then afterward she and her tutor strolled down the hallway without a second glance.

I couldn't help but dwell on the fact that she looked quite familiar. She vaguely reminded me of a classmate back in Citizen School. Even so, I had no idea other kids were doing the same thing I was doing, trying to convert over from a citizen to a superior reputation of being shinobi.

The hokage's assistant came back from within the room and took us inside. The environment was cold and drafty, yet very luminous. It was pretty empty save for a thin desk and its proctor behind it. Surprisingly the hokage was nowhere in sight and Miss Tutor immediately relaxed.

I whispered a question to her before we parted ways: "Why's the room so cold?"

She replied back loosely, "You'll see in a minute during your presentation."

Miss Tutor and the man stood beside the desk whilst I took my place in the center of the room. The proctor at the desk fixed her glasses, snuffled, and spoke around the noise of shuffling papers.

"I reckon the exams were a breeze?"

"You could say that," I replied.

"What were they about?"

I muttered a word of confusion. What was with the questions? The mantis-like lady with her gleaming glasses tilted her chin up at me, wondering what the hold-up was.

I racked my brain and reluctantly answered, "The first one quizzed me on rules of the shinobi way, facts of chakra, body techniques, and other things about how a student should fight." _I think that's what it was all about._

_Yeah, it should have been._

"And the other exam?"

"Survival tactics, first-aid, teamwork, signs of danger, and economics."

She straightened a pile of papers by tapping them on her desk and afterward, neatly placed them flat upon the polished wood. She clapped her hands. "Very fantastic. That's exactly what the tests were about, so I'm glad you heeded the topics well…"

_Months of preparation lady. You have no idea what I went through. I threw everything away. I threw Naruto away._

"Now for the presentation, please perform the Clone jutsu with the correct postures, signs; and the jutsu must have its results. Your performance will be graded on how well you execute the jutsu, as well as how many acceptable clones you can create. The minimum of clones is two. I wish you luck, and whenever you're ready!" She tweeted cheerfully.

This was the moment I'd been waiting for.

I nodded, shut my eyes, spread my feet apart, and clasped my palms together. I chucked the lingering, troubling thoughts out the window. My energy level was practically empty, so it took all my power to not fall asleep while going into 'meditating' mode.

Bits of my indolent chakra rushed hesitatingly to my hands and to the pit of my stomach until I found it was enough to suffice for at least two shadow clones. The back of my neck warmed up and I suddenly felt nauseous. At the last second, I found I was taking too long, and I began to worry.

_Oh no, what're the signs? I forgot the signs! This was supposed to go perfect! I should've studied! _

_Curse you, Souka!_

Beads of sweat trickled down my face and the back of my shirt felt hot and sticky despite the cold room. My palms were still clasped together but they trembled uneasily because of the impatient chakra swirling around inside there, ready to be released. I breathed rapidly through my nose. I was starting to lose my calm composure.

_Oh to heck with it._

I randomly weaved three signs—Ram, Snake, and Tiger—and just hoped to the skies they were the right ones. A photogenic image of myself ran across my pitch black vision and I shouted shakily, managing to shove down the rising bile in my throat.

"C-Clone Jutsu!"

It was done. It was over. I heard the signature magical sounds and I immediately fell to the ground onto the side of my head, still facing my audience.

The room was silent, and all I heard was breathing.

_Did I fail? Did I make it?_

I looked to my side, expecting absolutely no clones. But luckily, I was wrong.

_Oh, thank the heavens, _I thought, utterly relieved. There standing beside me, I saw the other duplicates of myself, the girl I would see on the other side of the mirror. _Who knew there'd be a day when I was happy with that girl in the mirror for once?_

She looked different; she was pumped, energized, and not at all bedraggled. She seemed perfect; but I protested otherwise. The real Souka—me—felt like crap.

Miss Tutor began clapping and the uptight man joined in soon after. Even the mantis lady looked pleased, and she took a moment to adjust some papers before opening her mouth meticulously.

"It was a bit rough I have to admit; but you still managed to pull it off. That's what matters most in the end, along with the number of clones created, indubitably."

She held up a bulky scroll. "Additionally, I had just received the results from your written exams not long ago, and if I add all three graduation test scores together; I am thrilled to say that you are now deemed a shinobi of genin-rank. Wear the headband proudly, and protect Konoha and its people with ad infinitum strength!" She glanced at the man. "Now where's the next student in line…"

_Hah, I did it! Woo!_

I pumped half-heartedly into the air as my eyes fluttered, sleep overcoming me. "Yes…" I said softly, giving my last conscious breath. _I did it. I passed. I don't know if I exceeded…but I passed! _

I brought my foot to touch my clone's ankle, making her disappear, and I did the same with the other one. Now what about me, the real one? The Souka who's now a ninja? What's she going to do now?

_I think…I think I'll just sleep, right here on the floor._

_Graduation is over. _

(***)

My stomach growled loudly.

_This is ridiculous. Why haven't I gone to see him yet? _

The posters distributed across my bedroom walls swayed and flapped to the midnight's breeze that was let in by the open window. The cool wind twined around my bare toes and traveled up my sweltering body. I was fretting, and on edge. I'd just woken up from a terrible dream that I couldn't remember anything about. I shoved the thick blankets further away from me.

_I knew the dream was about Naruto. That's for sure. But I guess I've had other worse nightmares._

I deliberately got up on wobbly knees and made way towards a fallen poster that had landed on the carpet floor. I picked it up gingerly along with its clear, dusty tack, and I smoothed the poster back on to the wall, pushing the tack in at the top.

_I bought this poster when Naruto and I went around town for groceries. _I glanced at the other posters that dotted the walls all reminded me of our outings. Even the calendar.

Rubbing my numb face warily, I went into the bathroom to clean and wash up, because it'd been a while since I've done that. Once I was finished, I went back towards my room to swap in to some fresher clothes. I hid in the corner by the mirror to do that though, for everyone's sake outside my window.

A rumbling noise made its way out my stomach again so I made the rash decision of going out in the kitchen to eat. I couldn't remember the last time I even had a proper meal. Not even a little snack for that matter.

After I made the choice of just drinking milk for tonight, I dwelled by the counter, hunching over the cold, pastel surface. A sparkle caught my eye. It was coming off from the headband lying messily on the table. Miss Tutor must've put it there while she escorted me home over her shoulder. I was still asleep at the time.

I cleaned up the counter and disposed of my empty glass to head back into my room. The alarm clock on my nightstand read about eleven-thirty. I'd just woken up the third time today, so I wasn't the bit tired.

_Ah, I forgot my headband. _I ran back down the hallway to grab it but once I got there I realized something off about the way it was sprawled out. I did notice before that it wasn't folded neatly like it should be—because Miss Tutor dropped this thing off—so why wouldn't it be?

_Okay, now I'm just over-analyzing things._ _But what if…? _I went over to the front door and checked its knob. I gave Miss Tutor a spare key to my room years ago when she demanded me for one, so afterward she always had access to my apartment 24/7. It also meant she would lock it so securely whenever she'd leave me alone inside the apartment.

I discovered the door wasn't locked, and the only other person who'd have a key was Naruto.

I whipped back at the headband. One of the chairs to the table wasn't pushed in either. Did that mean Naruto had come in here? But why? Didn't he graduate? Why didn't he just wake me up when he came in? Knowing Naruto, he would get excited over the smallest of achievements, so surely that would've pushed him to celebrate with me and erase away his anger for just that moment.

I cautiously picked up my headband and traced the familiar Konoha symbol inscribed onto its metal palate. _Why did he just touch this and leave? _

_"No. _Oh_ no no no."_

I gasped and almost dropped my headband. _He didn't graduate! That's the only reason why he wouldn't wake me up, right? Unless he's still _that _mad at me? Impossible…_

Holding the headband dearly into my chest, I walked back slowly into my depressing chamber. I thought nothing but negative things, and every object seemed so dark and shady. I gingerly lied on my side onto the bed, letting the darkness of the hour devour me.

_But we were going to be on teams and do everything together. What about that promise we made? Of staying in each other's lives?_

_It's like he broke the promise when _I _broke it yesterday._

I let the headband fall to the floor. The thing meant nothing right now.

I couldn't believe I let Sasuke get to me. How did that guy manage to cause all of this? I hadn't even met him yet. Or was this whole situation my fault? Whose fault was it?

The thoughts in my head started to sound very familiar, very like my first encounter with Sasuke, so I grabbed a pillow and stuffed it onto my left ear, squishing my face between the mattress and the pillow. I didn't want to argue with myself anymore and I did that too often.

_I'll find Naruto first thing in the morning and we'll straighten this out. That's my priority. No more Sasuke. I've got Naruto, right? Everything will be fine, screw Sasuke, screw Uchiha; All I need to do is focus on getting Naruto on my team, and afterward see what the hokage wants me to do next in order for me to find my answers. It's all simple. _

I heard a commotion going on from outside in the village and I saw leaping silhouettes of ninjas dancing atop the building across from the complex. I turned my back to them though, and blocked them out, watching the scene from the window's light on my wall instead. The voices died down briefly after, and the shimmering shadows returned back to being the sessile moonlight on the wall. I lied on my tear-stained pillow motionless.

Gradually, I drifted into a deep slumber where I was unexpectedly thrown into another nightmare. It took place in a world of black. I was fleeing from an unknown malign force in the darkness, yet at the same time I was chasing after an unmoving Naruto that always seemed to be three steps ahead of me.

But then the dream shifted.

The point of view changed to third person, zooming out from my body to a bird's eye view. I discovered there was a spectator to this whole episode. This episode of determination and hunting. It was Sasuke Uchiha from when I last saw him. A little, stoic, black-clothed boy.

He was just sitting there, lounging in my kitchen chair, leaning in onto his elbow that rested on the table beside him. He was at least a mile away from the occurrence, but his position still shared the same, black background.

A smirk was plastered over his face.

"_Can't handle me, Souka?"_

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**A/N:**** I seriously just wrote that last scene up last minute. It just popped into my head, but it'll give you readers some healthy foreshadowing :)**** Expect new appearances (like Sasuke) next chapter! Hopefully I'll be able to upload it tonight. **

**Next, what I wanted to mention last chapter were the reviews…(Explanation's too long, *Please visit profile if want to see further details*) (Questions? Leave a review and hopefully I'll be able to get to you either PM or next A/N, thanks!)**

**This story is now an Adventure/Mystery, because I have many twists in store that won't be terrifying or completely absurd, I Promise You XD . Incest is NOT an idea in this story, so I just felt it best to change the genre.**

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**Shout out to pewpewpenguinz for that awesome review, it's helped me tons, and also the guest reviewer, Reader,** **your thoughts expanded my thinking****! Thanks guys!**

** Reader: Sorry, it was not meant to describe her eyes as pink XD She was just sleep-deprived! But that was my fault. Souka has onyx eyes. Re-read that part to erase the confusion (Ch.4) Thanks again.**

**Random, but..**

** Ceralyn: I've heard you were looking forward to the graduation's scene…is the scene above what you meant or the orientation? If it's orientation then I am so sorry for that long wait XD It's next chapter xP**

**No 'Chapter Question'! Maybe next time.**

**Happy Roaming!—Yuki ^^**


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